Of those with wings
by Sakurachild
Summary: She didn't know what her destiny was or even that she had one, but when Sakura becomes the target of Demon attacks, a shadowed past will reveal itself. SasuSaku
1. Part I: Protect

A/N: okay, this is my first Naruto fic and it's a bit Au-ish. Please be kind and review.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any affiliated characters.

The wind picked up and the rain beat down, as the storm grew fiercer. The lone kounichi raced through the forest, careful not to make any noise around the fallen twigs and damp leafs. Dark wisps of hair were plastered against her pale flesh as a pair of violet eyes searched tirelessly for her prey. Her heart beat quickly and her legs ached but she kept going, intent on her goal.

_The distinct sound of a blade slicing through the air drew her attention to the left. Two figures fought their Katana's clashing with every strike. The kounichi's eyes widened as she ran faster now to were the fight was taking place. "Otone!" she called, but the sound caught in the wind and carried away as soon as the words left her chapped lips. She screamed louder, only to realize the futility of her strain. _

_One figure, a man, held the katana over his head and with inhuman speed brought it down. The blade cut through his opponent with a sickening slash. "Otone!" she screamed, finally reaching the battleground. She slid against the slippery mud and caught the falling body before it landed against the soaked earth. _

_"Kaori," the fallen ninja said, coughing. Specks of blood spotted her lips as her heavy lids looked up at her sister. Kaori's eyes filled with tears as she watched her twin slowly die. With her final breath, she said, "Don't let them find her." Her body then fell limp. _

_Otone's murderer laughed, deep, throaty, and evil. He watched the fallen kounichi's body go limp in her sister's arms. "She should have spoken when I asked her," he said, his voice cold and his body hidden in the shadows. Kaori stared in horror at the man, but her fear soon became rage. "She was very young to be a guardian of something so precious. Sadly, her skills did not save her," his ire voice nearly sang. Kaori shuddered. _

_"I'll kill you," she threatened as he stepped out from the shadows. Her eyes opened wide with terror. She knew the attacker was not human, but it still filled her with panic when she saw him. His eyes had been dug out, replaced by an evil aura. His forehead was engraved with a strange symbol of a serpent wrapped around the kanji symbol for death. His teeth were sharp and his tongue split like a snake._

_"You are to afraid to fight me. Your fear is potent," he said as he took more steps to her. He lifted his arms above her, katana in tow, ready to strike her down with a final blow. _

_"Even if you kill me, you will never find her," Kaori spat. The serpent-man stopped mid blow and looked at her through the blade as it hung dangerously close to her face. "You will never have Michiko's child!" she screamed. _

_"Dear fool, you think she will be safe. We will find her, and she will die. There is nothing you disgusting mortals can do about it. Do you really think a human could protect her?" the monster laughed. Kaori jumped up and attacked the serpent, catching him off guard. _

"She was borrowed by the heavens to save us, and I will not let you stop her destiny," Kaori said as she removed the steal blade of her katana from the monster's gut.

_She raced through the forest again, the bundle held tightly against her chest. She was ready to weary and shook constantly, but she drove on as hard as she could. Finally the familiar gates of Konoha appeared. At the gate, three ninja's in animal masks surrounded the fourth Hokage. "Hokage-sama, thank you for agreeing to help us," Kaori said solemnly. She carefully pulled the small bundle away from her and looked down into the eyes of an infant. _

_"She will be safe here," the Hokage said firmly. "Are you sure you don't want to stay? We can protect you as well," he offered. Kaori shook her head and smiled kindly._

_"No sir, I must lure the demons away. It's been my duty since birth to protect this child, and I will die for that cause," She said sternly. The Hokage smiled and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. _

_"You are so young to bare this burden, but your bravery is far beyond your years. Take care Kaori," he said. In a flash she was gone. The Hokage ran a hand through his blond hair and sighed. Turning to the ANBU solider on his right he said, "inform the Haruno family that they have a new mission." The man nodded and disappeared. The Hokage and the remaining ANBU walked back into the gates of the Hidden Leaf village. _

Well that's all for chapter one. It's just to give you all an idea of the story. Sorry it's so short. If people want me to continue it please review so I can decide if it's worth pursuing.


	2. Part II: Her life

A/N: I'm happy to see that people enjoyed my story. I'd like to thank everyone whom read this and reviewed.

**daydreamer53221** : I'm sorry the chapter was short but I didn't want to try and cram too much stuff in one chapter. I thought just the prelude would do. I plan on making my chapters much longer then that.

**xelagirl2 :** I'm glad that you like my story! I'm not sure how often I'll be updating, but I'll try my hardest to put a chapter up once a week. And don't worry, there will definitely be romance between Sasuke and Sakura. Thanks for the idea about Sasuke's jealousy. I'll try and make that work.

**Sky**: Hi friend, I'm glad you like the opening. I was shooting towards a mysterious opening so I guess my goal was met. You didn't bother me at all, actually the opposite. I really enjoy reading what people have to say about my writing.

Shinobi Darkbeak: I'm glad that my story caught your interest. 

**i-x3-shikamaru **: I'm sorry you didn't get it but hopefully you'll keep reading cause the story will unravel in time.

**becky **: I'm glad you like my story.

**Verity-Chan**: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you like my writing style.

**inudemonlover **: I'm going for it! Thanks for the pep talk.

**December Jewel**: I'm glad to have caught your interest.

**Cyberwing:** Wow, a lot of people liked my intro. Hope I live up to the expectations.

**ELIE: ** Glad you like the story. I'll try and update regularly.

Disclaimer: you all know that I don't own Naruto…right?

hdgfghaskgh (page break, letters may not be in that order)

"Sakura! Get your ass back here!"

At that, Sakura ran faster down the hall away from the fifth's office.

"You haven't finished you training yet!" a very angry Hokage yelled. Soon she was throwing a barrage of different items at the fleeting kounichi. Sakura dodged each item with a lack of grace that only she could manage.

"Sorry! Sorry Tsunade-sama! I have to get to the grocery store before it closes!" Sakura pleaded helplessly. She sensed something-large heading toward her and flattened herself against a wall to avoid it. The large something turned out to be poor Ton-Ton. Luckily Shizune was able to save the pet pig from the wall at the other end of the hallway.

"Come on Tsunade-sama! This is getting out of hand. You're endangering other people's lives now," Sakura pleaded. A kunai whizzed dangerously close to her ear. "Ok, that's just mean," she pouted.

"Sakura, you can leave when I tell you to! Now get back here," Tsunade screamed. Sakura looked back at Shizune who was petting a dazed Ton-Ton with an apologetic look. Sakura then looked at the halls cluttered with junk that had previously been used as a weapon. '_If I don't go back this building will be nothing but rubble by tomorrow. Oh well, I guess I'll live without food for another day,'_ Sakura thought. Her shoulders drooped in defeat.

Sakura walked slowly back to Tsunade with a white flag posture. The runaway looked up at her teacher expecting to see a look of evil and wondered what kind of punishment she would get. It surprised her to see the Hokage smile sweetly at her, and it was freighting. '_I'm dead.'_

To say that Sakura was shocked by what happened next would be an understatement. "Good training today. Have the rest of the day off." With that, Tsunade walked back into her office and closed the door. Sakura stood there with a loss of words. The door remained closed. It wasn't a dream. "Get out of here unless you want twice as much training tomorrow!" Tsunade shouted.

And Sakura turned on her heel and fled.

fkhdglkgfgjrhsgkyjugfjhghxdfksghkhfgsdfh 

The grocery bags slapped against Sakura's legs as she trudged down her street. The sound of each slap echoed in through the quite village making the carrier cringe. It seemed like everyone else had turned in early since it was only seven. Either that or they were all enjoying their dinners. Sakura let out a frustrated sigh.

"I'm hungry," she grumbled angrily.

"Sakura!" The kounichi looked back at the person who called her. Ino was running up the street toward her. "Sakura, were the hell have you been! I tried finding you at the Hokage's office, but you weren't there," the blond complained. She closed in on Sakura and grabbed her in a hug. "I'm getting married!"

"What?" Sakura shouted, choking slightly from shock and lack of oxygen. Ino released her death grip on Sakura and pushed her hand into her friend's view.

"Isn't it gorgeous? Shikamaru just asked me and I said yes and now I'm getting married, I can't believe it. Oh my God, I think I'm hyperventilating," Ino rushed. She was breathing fast and heavy. Sakura shook her friend but that didn't seem to help. Thinking fast, she slapped Ino across the face.

"Better?" Sakura asked. Ino glared at her, but at least she was breathing normally. "Come on. I know you're gonna regale me with the details weather I wont you to or not. We might as well do it in my apartment," Sakura said. She started to head to her home with Ino on her heels.

Sakura pushed her door open with her foot and made her way to the kitchen area of the large room. Ino closed the door behind her and started to help Sakura put the groceries away. "It was really romantic. He got down on one knee and everything. I couldn't believe Shikamaru would put so much work into anything, like ever," Ino said. Her eyes were filled with stars. Sakura smiled at her friend and put the tomatoes in the fridge.

"So what happened that was so special?" Sakura asked. She wasn't interested at first but the more Ino talked about it the more she wanted to know. "Was there a white stallion involved?" Sakura asked jokingly.

"Everything but. Why don't you make some tea and ill tell you all about it while you make us some dinner," Ino suggested. Sakura grabbed a thawed piece of chicken from the freezer and threw it into the microwave to thaw.

"Chicken Parmesan all right," she asked, Ino nodded and grabbed two mugs from one of the cabinets. Sakura set the kettle on the stove filled with water. Once the tea was done, Sakura pulled the chicken out of the microwave and began to prepare the food. She popped it into the oven and Ino finished up the tea.

They both sat down at the table with their mug of tea. "Okay, so Shikamaru called my up this morning and reminded me that we had plans. It was so cute how urgent he was cause I had no idea what the big deal was. So around four, he picks me up for our early dinner. We went to this really cute, very fancy restaurant. They played music right by our table and we're eating. So then Desert comes and it's this really good chocolate cake, like you have know idea. So good..."

"Um, that's swell but that tells me nothing about the actual engagement," Sakura interrupted.

"Right. Ok, so we finish the desert and Shikamaru starts telling me how much I mean to him and how he wants us to be together forever and all that jazz. So then her gets down on one knee and he pulls out this beautiful ring. The he asked! And I said yes!" Ino finished.

Sakura smiled at her friend. "That's great Ino, I'm so happy for you," she said. She brought the mug of tea up to her lips and sipped.

"So when are you getting hitched?" Ino asked. Sakura spit her tea out and began to choke. Ino cringed and grabbed some paper towels from the kitchen. "That's was gross," she complained.

"That was uncalled for," Sakura shot back.

"What? It's a perfectly fine question. I'm interested in your life. I worry about you," Ino said as she mopped up the mess of tea. "You're always training and never having fun anymore. It's like you've become some machine that is inhuman."

The mug Sakura held was placed down as she helped Ino clean up her mess. "Ino, a machine is inhuman. And that's not true, I have fun. Besides, what's wrong with training?" She asked defensively. "Just because you prioritize your flower shop above being a ninja, doesn't mean I have to."

"That's not what I mean. It's ok to train and stuff, but you do it all the time. So I'm making you play hooky tomorrow. You and me are going to celebrate my engagement with Tenten and Hinata. I already reserved a hot spring for us and I wont take no for an answer," Ino said. She placed her hands on her hips and stared intently at her pink haired friend.

"Tsunade-sama is going to kill me," Sakura reasoned. Ino looked unmoved. Sigh. "Fine I guess just once will be alright seeing as it's for a good cause," Sakura said reluctantly. Ino jumped for joy.

"Yes! Alright Sakura Now lets have some of that delicious dinner you made," Ino said. Sakura shook her head. Being friends with Ino was going to get her killed one day, that was for sure. If it wasn't her loud mouth, it was the stress.

Sakura opened the oven and stepped to the side allowing the heat to come out. She reached in and pulled out the chicken with one hand and shut the oven with the other. Sakura removed her pink oven mitts and rummaged through her one or her draws.

"So Sakura, you never answered my question," Ino said. Sakura looked back at her friend quizzically as she tried to recall the question. The mischievous look on Ino's face scared her a little.

"What question was that?" She asked carefully. She found her spatula and began to transfer the chicken to plates.

"When are you getting married!" Ino shouted. Sakura sighed and handed Ino a plate. "Come on, you don't even have a boyfriend. Hinata finally got the gulls to ask Naruto out, and Tenten and Neji have been dating for God only knows how long. Don't tell me you're still holding a flame for Sasuke." Ino stared down her friend but Sakura remained silent. "You are, aren't you," this time her tone was softer, almost sympathetic.

"What can I say. It was never just a childhood crush for me. I really love him," Sakura admitted. Ino watched Sakura as she stared down at her half-eaten meal. It was so sad. For as long as she could remember, Sakura had fawned over the Uchiha prodigy, but she was always turned down. It never seemed to really bother her until that night when he left. She had made him a promise, but she never said what kind.

It took them three years to get him back and him three years to prove himself again. The only people who had never turned their back on him, was his former team. Sakura waited that whole time, turning down dates and proposals left and right. Ino had once questioned her actions and Sakura simply stated, "I made him a promise." There was no arguing with that.

"Sakura, when I gave up my crush on Sasuke, we had already regained our friendship. That means so much to me. But you still haven't told me about you're promise. The one you made to him," Ino said. She didn't look up. She didn't have to. She knew Sakura had that same, sad, far off look with that smile. It was hallow. It was the same look she had every time the promise was brought up.

Sakura bit into her dinner and chewed thoughtfully for a while. As if debating whether she should finally tell someone about her promise. "I promised him that I would always be there for him. I promised we could be happy together. I can't go back on that," she said. Ino just stared at her friend in wonder.

It was strange to see Haruno Sakura without her usual smile and chipper attitude. The only time she looked any other way was when she fought. Still, at this moment, Sakura looked so different. Ino stood up and hugged her friend. Sakura returned the hug and soon was her happy self again.

"You shouldn't hide yourself from people, Sakura," Ino said. "Just now you showed me the real you, and its not healthy," Ino said. Sakura smiled. "Do me a favor? Try and be happy, for real," Ino asked.

"I'll do that, Ino. For you," Sakura said jokingly.

"Don't do it for me. Do it for yourself."

Sakura looked up. Ino stared meaningfully at her. "You know, that promise was the first one I ever made that had that much meaning behind it," she explained. Ino just nodded.

Sakura walked Ino to the street and waved goodnight. She headed back to her apartment, but stopped suddenly. Her hand went to her pack and soon she had a kunai held tightly. Her movements were like light, so fast hey were barely visible. The kunai flew into a nearby tree. Sakura waited, but nothing happened.

"I must be getting paranoid in my old age," Sakura mused out loud. She turned and headed back inside of the apartment building.

A dark figure jumped down from the tree twirling a kunai around its finger. Violet eyes studied the building. "Not paranoid. Perceptive." The figure embedded the kunai in the ground and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

hdfsgkfdgkfgsadhgfakshf 

A/N: well that's chapter two. Hope you all liked it. Hopefully I can finished the next chapter and get it up quickly. I'm sorry about the short chapters but I'm working on it I swear.


	3. Part III: It Starts

A/N: Well here comes the third part in this story. I have so many ideas for this story but they all will come in time. The beginning of this story is moving slowly but once I get really into it hopefully it will be better. Thank you everyone who reviewed, it really helps me get the chapters out!

**animechickie : **Glad you like, I can't tell you if the figure was friend or foe, you'll have to read more to figure it out, but it will definitely come up again, most likely in the fifth chapter.

**xelagirl2 **: happy to live up to your expectations. I have two other Naruto stories that are one-shots. One is called Apology, which is about Sasuke and Sakura, and the other one is Seasons, which isn't about any specific couple, but I thought of Obito and Rin when I wrote it.

**Only Secret **: Yay, my story feels the love. I'll try and update as much as I can.

**ghst.sama **: The plot is only getting started. Much more to come.

**XxangelsfromhellxX**: Thanks, hope you keep reading and enjoying.

**ellamoony **: I'm glad you love it. Keep reviewing!

**Shinobi Darkbeak:** thanks for the review. I'll keep updating so long as people like the story and from the looks of things I might actually finish this story.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The sun spilled over the horizon, leaking rays of light through Sakura's blinds. They came together in a puddle of light on her bed. The pink kounichi winced at the brightness and rolled over to on her other side. She had no intention of waking up with the sun if she wasn't even going to train.

She idly wondered what exactly she would say to the Godaime. She could just here the phone call now.

"_Hello?"_

"_Hi Tsunade-sama. I won't be able to make it into training today, I'm not feeling well."_

"_Aren't I training you to be a medic-nin?"_

"_Well…yes, but…"_

"_So I'm a bad teacher who can't even teach her student how to take care of a common cold!"_

"_I'll see you in an hour Sensei."_

Oh yeah, that would be great. Not only would Tsunade ham up the guilt trip, but also she'd probably pile on extra training. That was the last thing she needed. She had to come up with another plan. Or maybe she could get out of her plans with Ino.

"_Hey Ino, look I can't come with you today. I have training and I'll never get out of it."_

"_Hahahaha. Yeah right. See you in a little."_

"_Yeah, ok."_

Sakura shook that idea out of her head. Braking plans with Ino was harder then explaining rocket science to Naruto. She growled to herself. This was going to be tricky. Sakura silently cursed Shikamaru and his horrible timing. So what if it was romantic to propose on your anniversary. It was cliché in Sakura's mind. Romance was over rated.

_ "So when are you getting hitched?" _

Curse Ino too. Sakura contemplated her choices again.

"_Hello?"_

"_Hello Tsunade-sama. I can't come to practice today. You see my grandmother just passed away."_

"_And which grandmother would that be? The one I just lost all my money to last night or the one whose name has been on the monument since before you were born?"_

"_Right, see you soon."_

That was possibly worse then her other idea. Had Tsunade actually bought that lame excuse, she would probably show up at her house with tears in her eyes and tissues in her hand. That and Sakura would loss a lot of respect for her teacher. Honesty. That was all she could come up with. Wasn't she supposed to be intelligent? Good grief.

Sakura rolled out of her bed and stumbled around looking for her phone. It was too early for this. She left her room, using the wall to steady herself. She ran a hand over the wall and soon found the distinct shape of her phone. She dialed the number more times then she would have liked until she finally got it right. It rang twice before Shizune picked up.

"Tsunade's office."

"Hey Shizune. Its Sakura, is Tsunade awake?"

"She's sleeping off a hangover that's pretty bad. I'll get the water bucket."

Leave it to Shizune to be wide-awake at this hour. Tsunade being drunk wasn't much of a surprise either. Most of Sakura's training was spent being yelled at to keep it down by Tsunade who would be nursing a headache. She could get rid of it easily enough if she used chakara, but she was old fashion. Or that was her excuse, Tsunade just liked having a reason to wiggle out of paperwork.

Sakura heard a variety of colorful words before Tsunade picked up the phone. Sakura sighed. She didn't want to ask an angry Hokage.

"Hello?" Tsunade's voice was groggy.

"Um, hi Tsunade-sama. It's Sakura. I just wanted to tell you I wouldn't be coming to training today."

"Oh really? Why is that?"

"Well you see, Ino just got engaged and she wants me to join her celebration." Sakura held her breath.

"Alright, see you tomorrow."

"But Tsunade… wait. Did you say alright?"

"Yes."

"Oh, well okay then. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye now."

Well that was easy. Sakura was not about to question her luck. In her mind, it was about time that something went her way. With every intention to go back to bed, Sakura slumped onto the couch, but as soon as she felt the welcoming cushions hit her back, a loud knock ended her happy time. Sakura growled, but dragged herself over to the door despite the irritation.

"Are you ready?" Ino asked from the other side of the door. Sakura recognized the bossy tone immediately. She silently muttered some curses under her breath before pulling open the door with a large, fake smile plastered on.

"Ino! What the hell do you want," she said, her voice growing darker with every syllable. Ino just smiled obliviously as she pushed her way into Sakura's living room. The medic-nin-to-be, rolled her eyes and returned to her couch. Ino stood above her tapping her foot impatiently. "Yes?"

"Are you getting ready now, or do I have to dress you?" Ino asked angrily. Sakura stared up incredulously at her friend.

"Your getting married, isn't that against the rules?" Sakura asked.

"Well aren't you just little-miss-literal? Just get dressed. Hinata and Tenten are waiting at the hot springs already and you're making us late." Ino's face turned into her stern bossy face. Now Sakura understood why Shikamaru was afraid of this face. It was frightening beyond reason.

With Ino's fierce instruction, Sakura found herself outside the hot springs mer minutes later, with a chipper Ino. Sakura idly wondered about her blond friend's mood swings but decided against mentioning them in fear of seeing her go angry again.

The day was spent at the hot springs, the theater, and finally a late dinner. Sakura had enjoyed the day off, but spent most of the daylight reminding herself that tomorrow was back to hard work. She refused to allow herself to get attached to the bliss of life.

The group of four left the restaurant as the sun fell below the horizon, casting a red glow over the quite village. Aimless chatter of love and politics flourished in the street as they made their way home with mirth. The night was warm, until a sudden wind picked up, chilling the twilight.

"Damn it got cold," Ino complained. She hastily rubbed her arms to create warmth. Hinata pulled her jacket closer around her body, and Tenten blew into her hands. Unlike the others, Sakura's eyes narrowed, suspicion getting the best of her.

"Is it just me, or does something seem wrong?" she asked. To her dismay, Sakura was greeted only by three blank stares. "You don't feel, I don't know, ominous?" she asked, hoping that she would receive a better answer.

"You didn't really think that question out did you?" Sakura only glared at Tenten.

"You're paranoid," Ino speculated. "It's from all that training. You need to get out more, not just tonight. It's wind for Pete's sake, its not like the world is coming to an end." As much as it pained Sakura to do so, she had to agree with Ino. It would be a bit hypocritical on her part to say that she felt she was in no way paranoid like her mind screamed for her to say. It was just yesterday that the kounichi had accused herself of the same crime.

With a nervous chuckle, Sakura rubbed the back of her neck. "You guys are probably right, I'm just overreacting." A loud clap of thunder erupted through the streets, knocking the group of their feet and onto the ground. "I take it back! That was definitely not normal," Sakura yelled. Her joy of being right was quickly shadowed by her instincts as a ninja. She and Tenten were on their feet in an instant, crouched into a fighting stance.

"What the hell was that?" Ino cried hysterically. Hinata, once on her feet, trembled over to the blond and helped her up. Ino shakily stood up, steadying herself against Hinata's shoulder.

"You don't think Konoha is under attach do you," the Hyuuga asked, her voice timid. Sakura surveyed the area, but found no proof for or against Hinata's fear, until the shadow cast from a near by building grew three tendrils that seemed like a deformed version of Shikamaru's favorite technique. The shadowy forms molded into a somewhat human shape, and began to peel off the ground.

"Not to sound like a jerk but before we get any further I'd like to say one thing," Sakura said. The three girls looked over at her, Hinata and Ino in question, Tenten with a look of 'don't-even-say-it'. Sakura ignored this. "Told you so." No amusement was in her voice however.

"I'd call it a lucky hunch, don't let it go to your head," Tenten said irritably. Hinata and Ino finally got into a fighting stance and watched as the shadow figures took on a more three-dimensional look.

"Is this freaking any one else out?"

"Shut up Ino."

"Geeze Tenten, lighten up."

"We're getting ready for a fight," Tenten shouted indignantly.

"Not all of us," Sakura said sternly. Her auto switch went on as she began to form a plan in her mind. She knew four of Konoha's finest against three unknown ninja's was a waste of time. "Ino, I want you to get to the academy and make sure they go into lockdown. Hinata, go with her and provide back up, I have a "lucky hunch" things are going to get worse." Hinata and Ino nodded in understanding and disappeared down the street.

"Tenten, get to HQ and warn the Hokage about the assault. We need to stop this before it escalates," Sakura commanded.

The brunette, however, didn't budge. "Are you crazy? I'm not leaving you out here alone, and if Ino and Hinata knew this was what you were planning I doubt they would have left either," Tenten argued. Sakura's fierce glare shot over to her.

"Tsunade has to be warned, but if we both go, no one will be able to hold back the enemy. You need to go, I'll fallow once I know you're at a safe distance." Tenten still looked ready to argue. "What, you don't trust me to take care of three ninjas?" Sakura asked, a smirk on her face. Rolling her eyes in defeat, Tenten dashed down the ally leading toward HQ.

One of the shadows melted back into the ground and followed in Tenten's wake, while another took off toward the academy. Sakura pulled two kunai out from her pouch and started to aim at both figures. "Now, now," a deep voice called to her, the third figure. "Let them have their fun. It's been eighteen years since they last tasted blood," it said. The shadows began to drip down like tar off the figure. The black substance formed a pool at the creature's feet, then separated into more shadowy blobs that slid quickly across the ground in all directions reaching into the village. "What a lovely angel," it said, as though nothing had happened.

Sakura took in the strange appearance of the thing in front of her. It seemed like a human at first glance, but she noticed obvious differences. Its eyes were dug out, replaces with a glow that sent a chill through her spine. The shape of the eyes was reptilian like his tongue that slithered around as it spoke. Carved into its forehead was the kanji for death with a serpent wrapped around it.

"What the hell are you?" Sakura asked in horror.

A scaly hand ran its fingers over the hilt of his katana before grasping in tightly and removing it from its sheath. "There is time for that later. For now, lets see what you can do."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

(Hokage's Office; HQ)

"I want an explanation now!" Tsunade's fist made contact with her desk, making a deep dent in the metal.

"Please, Tsunade-sama, calm down," Shizune pleaded. Her dark eyes swept over the faces and masks of Konoha's elite, all of whom immediately arrived once they realized what was happening. Behind the Hokage stood two ANBU, one with a fox mask, one with a wolf's.

"Who would attack Konoha? There were no sings, there has been peace," one jounin asked, stepping forward. His tone was bored, but the look on his face showed his concern. The Hokage's eyes turned to him with burning anger.

"As helpful as that is, Shikamaru," Tsunade shouted, "That doesn't really help us figure out what we can do to fix this problem." Tsunade again pounded on her desk. No one else seemed to speak up. Is everybody at least present?" she questioned, trying to regain control over her anger.

As if on cue, the large double doors of Tsunade's office burst open. All eyes shot toward Tenten as she pushed through the crowd. She was about to speak but fell to the floor. Her body was covered in cuts and dried blood.

"Tenten!" One ANBU fell out of line to go to her aid.

"Hokage-sama," Tenten started. Her voice shook with fear. "The attackers, they aren't human," she explained. The ANBU helped her to her feet. "Thanks, Neji," she whispered.

"Not human? Then what would they want with Konoha?" Neji asked.

Murmurs of speculation filled the room. The Hokage glared at the people in the room and once the crowd settled, Tsunade posed the question that was on everyone's mind. "If they aren't human, then what do they want with our village?" the room was quite.

"Maybe we have something they want. It's not like Konoha isn't known for having, well, rarities," Shikamaru ventured, his gaze shifting to the two ANBU behind the Hokage. "We have had problems like this before," he added. Shikamaru shifted slightly, uncomfortable under the heated gaze the fox and wolf masked men.

"Whatever they want isn't our concern right now. We need to get them out of Konoha before anymore damage can be done." Tsunade said. "What about the academy? Do they even know what's going on?"

Tenten looked up as though she remembered something pivotal. "Yes, Sakura sent Ino and Hinata to warn the school," she said. "She still out there! She was going to hold back them back but we thought they were human. It was three against one," Tenten shouted. Tsunade's eyes widened. The two ANBU shared a glance, and in a second were out the nearest window. Tsunade spun around in time to see their backs as they disappeared.

"Kakashi!" a silver haired jounin with a crocked forehead protector. His posture was slouched but his visible eye was narrowed. "Go with them, and so help me God if all three aren't with you when you get back I will kill you myself!" Tsunade shouted. Kakashi nodded and walked toward the window. He stopped when he was shoulder to shoulder with the Hokage and placed a comforting had on her arm.

"She is my student too," he said in a low whisper that only she could hear, and with that he was gone.

"Alright!" Tsunade hollered. "I want teams of five, two ANBU to every three jounin, one team for every street. Neji, I want you to take your ANBU team to the Academy, they're going to need help." Tsunade's eyes darted to Shizune who hugged her pet Ton-Ton tightly. "Get Tenten to the infirmary then join Genma, Asuma, and myself back here to start patrol" No one argued, though Tenten looked as though she wanted to. Shizune shook her head and lead the girl from Tsunade's office. "What the Hell are you still doing here? Go!"

The room filled with smoke and cleared leaving it empty save for the Hokage and two Jounin. Tsunade fell back into her chair and rested her head in her arms. "I'm getting to old for this crap," she said.

"Well you look great for you age," Genma chided. Tsunade shot him a look that told him now was not the time. "Just trying to lighten the mood," he mumbled.

"Don't worry so much, She'll be fine," Asuma assured. "You and Kakashi both trained her. Besides, her team won't let anything happen to her." Tsunade sighed.

Shizune entered the room after only a few moments.

"Let's go do some damage control."

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A/N: that concludes chapter three. Sorry this chapter took so long to get out but my computer was having difficulties. Now I'm using the family one, which incidentally is way better then mine. Anyway, please R&R or I won't know if you like it. Later.


	4. Part IV: Fight!

A/N: Welcome one and all to the fourth chapter of this story. I would like to thank every one who reviewed. I know it's a bit confusing so far but it will clear up. I really appreciate the love.

**RunRAMENrun **: Thanks for the review!

**Xelagirl2 **: Wahoo, you're super in love with it? that's awesome. Thanks for the great review and I'll try and keep up with the long chapters!

**Only Secret **: Hopefully this chapter will explain what is going on a little better, but basically, Konoha is under attack. Hope the fight scene is good, its my first one so fingers crossed. Thanks for the review!

**Shinobi Darkbeak **: Glad you liked the last chapter. Thanks for the review!

**doggy thumper : ** Thank you!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any affiliated characters…sadly.

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Dust billowed up from the dirt road as Sakura's shoulder slammed into in. Her body tumbled into a nearby building, finally stopping the force against her. With laggard movements, she put herself in a shaky fighting stance. Narrowing her jade orbs, Sakura watched her opponent as he came closer, his every step echoing. It was sickening. Fear was etched into her features and her breaths became shallow. '_He's good, how could I have underestimated him,_' her mind screamed.

Sakura shot a kunai toward the demon she fought, but since her movements were considerably slower then usual he dodged it, but she expected that. While he was distracted she began making seals. The lifeless eyes darted over to her, but before a movement was made, smoke appeared and Sakura was gone. The demon thought she had run off, but was surprised to see a flash of pink before tumbling back from a strong force to his chest. He crashed into a wall opposite the one Sakura hit moments ago.

"That was a good move," he said, pulling himself up from the ground. "You faked that look of fear to give me a false sense of power so that when you disappeared I would think you were gone. Is that about right?" Sakura didn't answer, but she breathed heavily. "Your intelligence must be what makes you such a good ninja, seeing as your skills are only sub par." He taunted.

A kunai shot passed his ear. "Shut up," Sakura warned. She charged head first into him only to be shoved forcefully away by a sudden wind. "What the hell was that?" she asked, nearly screaming.

"I wouldn't worry about a simple gust of wind," slick words dripped from his mouth. Sakura sensed an overwhelming chakara surround her. The wind picked up and began to tighten around her body. Sakura felt her feet leave the ground, her lungs felt compressed.

'_I have to get out of this…or I'll be suff…ocated.'_ Sakura struggled uselessly against her invisible constrictions. "Who…who are you?" She managed to choke out, although she couldn't tell if he heard.

"My name is Akuma Jaaku, and we have met once before, though I'm sure you don't remember," He said, taking a few steps toward her. He stopped when her arms began to shake free from the windy prison. In an explosion of wind, Sakura fell to the ground free from the wind. "Well, well. You are a lot stronger then I thought you'd be. That's makes this all the more amusing" Jaaku said with a twisted smirk.

"I'm not hear for your amusement. Its my duty to protect Konoha," Sakura hissed. She could tell that last attack of his cost him a lot of energy, yet he still seemed as vicious as ever.

"Do you seriously believe that you have such a pathetic destiny? You probably don't even know what you are capable of," he sneered. He reached down to retrieve his Katana that Sakura had previously removed from him. "You have much bigger things in you're future then this measly village."

"Who are you to question me," Sakura demanded. Sakura removed two Kunai from her pouch and held them like daggers. She ran at Jaaku and pierced him through the heart. Her eyes shot open in terror as she removed the blade that was completely void of any blood. Jaaku's hand snapped around her neck.

"Are you done?" Sakura struggled in his grip grasping for air. Her nails dug into the flesh of his arm but he didn't even flinch. Instead, he tossed her into the ground and hauled his Katana over head before brining it down to the ground. It narrowly missed Sakura's shoulder as she rolled out of the way, swinging her legs around to kick jaaku's out from under him.

As soon as his body hit the ground, Sakura's knee slammed into his chest, pinning him below her. When Jaaku began to struggle, Sakura's hands hit the ground on either side of his head and she flipped over on to her feet and spun around with a kunai in hand. Jaaku was on his feet as well also facing her with his Katana raised. His composure held no proof that she had over taken him.

"Would you just die already?" Sakura screamed as she lunged forward. She didn't even see his movements before she realized her back was three centimeters deep in the cement wall of a building. Pain shot up her spine as she peeled off the wall onto the ground.

"Die? How do you know I'm not already dead?" The question rang in Sakura's mind. Why hadn't that seemed like a possibility before? It should have been obvious when no blood came from his wounds. He was walking toward her and once he was close enough. Sakura's leg swung around. Before she could land a kick, however, Jaaku's scaly hand grasped her ankle. He spun around and released. Sakura flew through the air but managed to gain control and back flipped into a stance before rushing at his back. Jaaku's fist hit her gut and used her moment of weakness by grabbing a fist-full of pink locks and slamming her face to the ground.

Sakura felt blood gush from her nose, but blocked that thought from her mind. Her kunai slashed at the wrist restraining her hair. Jaaku pulled back releasing the tresses and Sakura pushed her hands into the ground and kicked up with one foot nailing him right in the chin, which sent him flying. Sakura whipped around and saw one of her own kunai flying towards her. It was inched from her face.

A sharp clanging noise rang in her ears.

Sakura opened her eyes, surprised that a kunai wasn't embedded in her forehead. She looked to her left and saw her kunai lying on the ground next to a senbon. Jaaku was looking in the direction from which the senbon had come from, his snake like eyes narrowed. Sakura stole a glance as well but saw nothing. However she felt something. It was like the night before.

Shaking her head, Sakura decided to attack while her opponent was distracted. She ran full speed like a blur, and by the time Jaaku spared her a glance he felt her fist slam into his cheek. She used her momentum to flip into the air, and just as she passed over head, she grabbed his shoulders and threw him over her. The strength she used was enough to break the wall he hit. As the debris cleared, Sakura could easily make out his trembling figure fighting to stand. She rushed him and began an assault of kicks and punches.

Jaaku, after being pummeled relentlessly, found an opening and took it. His leg extended and hit Sakura square in the chest. She fell backward into the road. A heavy force landed on her chest pinning her to the ground. She struggled to jet Jaaku's foot off but stopped when a Katana was thrust into her face, dangerously close to the tip of her nose. "They did a hell of a job with you," he bit. It was the first time that Jaaku 's calm broke. His eyes gazed down at her in irritation like a child who had enough of a game. "And you were supposed to be so great."

"I never boasted my abilities."

"You idiot. Don't you know anything?" Jaaku seethed. His shoulders pulsed with every aggravated breath. He was no longer relaxed like he had been for most he fight. It was as though he was finally taking their fight seriously. "when the time comes, you will die. I wont wait for another!" he shouted. "I have waited long enou…"

Jaaku was cut short by a sheriken that had sunk into his back. "Hey! Leave Sakura-Chan alone!" Naruto's familiar voice yelled out. Jaaku turned around and Sakura looked over his shoulder to see the blond ANBU standing next to the third member of their childhood team. Around the Uchiha's finger was another sheriken. It was poised for another attack. The two disappeared and Jaaku felt himself throw off the kounichi below him. Sasuke and Naruto stood next to Sakura, arms crossed. Sakura could tell, even through the masks, that her teammates were smirking in satisfaction.

"I could have handled him," she pouted, crossing her arms. She could feel Sasuke's eye roll. "Don't give me that Uchiha, I was doing fine up till you guys showed up," she said pointing accusingly at Sasuke. Naruto waved his hands in front of his face defensively.

"Sakura-Chan we aren't doubting you!" He assured. "Well, Sasuke probably is," he mumbled as an after thought. "I bet I could take out hat creep in a minute," Naruto said proudly. Sasuke scoffed.

"You would need a minute." Cold response. How very Sasuke. Sakura groaned loudly. Leave it to those two to turned her unnecessary rescue into a competition. They would never grow up, no matter how much older they were.

"You know guys," she started, her voice dull and bored like that of Shikamaru's, "If you weren't fighting each other, you probably could have fought Jaaku. Too bad he got away," She added. Sarcasm dripped off her words. Naruto and Sasuke both glanced at the empty space that Jaaku once stood in and Sasuke silently cursed. Naruto, however, was not so silent.

Throwing his mask to the ground, Naruto began a chorus of swears. He was halted in his babbling by a poof of smoke that appeared right beside him causing the hair on the back of his neck to stand on end. "Sorry I'm late, I got lost on…"

"Liar!" both Sakura and Naruto shouted. Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck and smirked under the cloth that hid his face.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"So let me get this straight, he just disappeared once you two showed up?" Tsunade asked incredulously. Her disbelieving stare passed from Sakura's face, to Sasuke's face, then Naruto's face. "Well?"

"That about sums it up," Sakura confirmed. Her teeth nipped at her long thumb nail. She did this whenever she was deep in thought. "Something just seemed so off about our fight. He had a few chances to finish me, but it was like Jaaku was testing me," She thought out loud. Sasuke's eyes shifted to her covertly. He noticed her confusion, much like his own.

In Sasuke's mind he wondered why a demon would test Sakura. She was strong, thanks to Tsunade's training, but besides that there was nothing special about her. She came from no notable clan and she didn't have any extraordinary blood limit. His charcoal glare set back on Tsunade who stared back at the three man team. Kakashi stood behind them having nothing to add to the report.

"As soon as the "Jaaku" demon guy left, the others did to?" Naruto asked. His bright blue eyes were closed in concentration as he rubbed his chin between his thumb and forefinger. "That means he was the leader, right?"

"You just realized that," Sasuke asked sarcastically. "He was also the one who initiated the attack on Konoha. Were you even paying attention dope?"

"Stop fighting, this isn't helping. We need to figure out what the hell they wanted here. All we can guess is that they were looking for something," Tsunade sat back in her chair and rubbed her temples. The last thing she wanted to deal with was a growing headache.

"Maybe they were looking for someone, not something," Sasuke interjected. This gained a few curious glances from everyone in the room.

"What makes you think that?" Naruto questioned.

"Sakura, you said that it felt like you were being tested?"

"Well yeah but, what does that have to do with anything?"

"That's a little odd don't you think?"

"Ho hum."

Sasuke ignored Sakura's indignity. "I think they found what they were looking for. That doesn't explain why they left without her though," Sasuke said.

"Whoa, what? You think they were after me?" Sakura asked. Her eyes were wide in disbelief. "That makes no sense. What would a group of demons want with me? Besides, they left me here. Maybe they just thought I was who they were looking for and realized they were wrong," she pointed out.

"That is a possibility, but I don't know if we should take that risk," Tsunade said. She eyed the three then shot a look at Kakashi. She knew better then to believe that he had shown up after the whole fight. He had probably been watching over them as back up. "You're all dismissed for now," she said waving them out of her office. Team seven turned to leave but Tsunade stopped Kakashi. "Not you."

Once the three younger shinobe left the room Tsunade motioned for Kakashi to take a seat. He did as he was ordered. "So, what's your take on the situation. I know you arrived before either Sasuke or Naruto and I want to know what you saw." Tsunade was quite, serious now.

"I think Sasuke was right about Sakura being the target. Jaaku spoke of her destiny. He said something about not wanting to wait till the next one." Kakashi laced is fingers together and put his hands behind his back.

"What aren't you telling me Hatake? I know when you're holding out on me." Tsunade nearly growled the last part. Kakashi's visible eye closed as he sighed.

"Ask the fourth." with that cryptic message, he was gone, like always.

"Jackass," Tsunade muttered. Her amber gaze shot to the smiling picture of the fourth Hokage. "What are you smiling at, he probably learned that from you!" she snapped. Tsunade stood up and walked over to the wall were Yondaime's picture hung.

"What do you know about Haruno Sakura that makes demons so interested in her?" She asked. Of course she received no answer. "You knew something was going to happen! Why is it a secret? You could have at least left some sort of clue," she screamed. The picture only smiled back. "How am I supposed to help my student if I don't even know what's going on?" she asked slamming her fist into the wall next to the picture frame. The force knocked it right off the wall and it broke on impact with the floor.

"Damn it," Tsunade cursed. She bent down and began to gather the broken bits of glass, but something caught her eye. Beneath the photo was a manila folder a name printed clearly across the top. "Hashinaka Sakura; Haruno Sakura".

"What the hell?" Tsunade wondered aloud. She opened the folder, ignoring the broken frame on the ground. As she read the contents of the folder, her eyes grew wide with shock. "Shit."

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A/N: Well that's a wrap fro chapter four. This was the first fight scene I've ever written so I hope it came out alright. Please tell me what you think. Later.


	5. Part V: Dream and Locket

A/N: Hello there everybody! I'm back on my own computer which is now running better then ever. This means I'll be able to update on schedule more cause I wont have to fight for time on my gram's computer. To celebrate I'm going to give you a fast update, but after this I'm going back to one a week. I got some really great reviews on the fight scene from last chapter. It's good to know that I can write a good fight (he he rhymes) since there will be some more of those going on.

**Ruriko89 **: here you go, all updated!

**doggy thumper : ** Thanks, I was kind of nervous about the fight but I'm glad you liked it!

**Shinobi Darkbeak :** Thanks, glad to please. I appreciate you reviewing every chapter, lets me know you're not losing interest.

**crystaljamie **: That's quite a complement. I try to make the story move at just the right pace so its good to hear that I can do that. I'm really glad you liked the scene and I hope I can keep writing so that you can feel like you're in the story, an I'll try and continue to keep the characters in check.

**Only Secret **: Thank you so much, not just for you're praise but for also reviewing often. I really do enjoy the feedback. I tried really hard to make the fight scene seem real, which is why I didn't give vanity much thought. I doubt Sakura or Jaaku would have either. Lol.

**xelagirl2 **: nope I'm not from the Philippines, I'm actually from Connecticut in the U.S. I used the word manila like those kind of folders, I didn't know there was a place by that name. Learn something new everyday! Oh ,and I'm eighteen. Thank you for reviewing, I really like to hear that my story is well enjoyed!

Disclaimer: I own some Naruto DVD's, but that's it. Not the series or any of the affiliated characters, but I do own Jaaku and a few other oc's that have yet to show up.

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The sun was already low in the sky, casting orange/red light on to the disturbed streets of Konoha, when the three shinobi once called team seven walked away from the Hokage's office. The two males of the group were ahead by a few feet while the pink haired member slunk back. Her mind was desperately trying to stop itself from analyzing her fight and the report at the office.

She nudged a rock with her toe enough to move it a few feet. She was too far from the boys to hear their conversation, especially with their uncharacteristically low voices, but from were she stood it looked as though Naruto was losing a one-sided battle. Sasuke's only answer to any of his blond friend's quips was his usual "Hn".

Sakura briefly wondered what the hell "Hn" even meant. The Uchiha used it in almost every occasion. It could be taken as "yes", "No", "maybe", or even "Shut up you idiot", the last one mostly in Naruto's case. The medic-nin also observed that Sasuke used the word when he had no interest in conversation, or had nothing to add. It was genius really. Sasuke could shuffle out of a conversation by just making a sound and no one would know whether it was because he was too bored to deal with it or if he didn't know anything on the subject. No matter what, he couldn't be questioned.

Having successfully taken her mind off the demons, Sakura smiled brightly. She didn't want to be bothered by a fight that she won, even if it was by default. It was that something didn't sit right with her about it. It had to have been his words. Something he had said about her duty to protect Konoha. _'He said it was pathetic to think that's what I'm here for, but what would he know about it,'_ she thought bitterly. She smacked her forehead in frustration. She was thinking about it again.

Her pink locks covered her eyes as she watched her feet walking. Her head was bent if defeat by her own thoughts and all she wanted was to be home in bed. Then she had run into something, knocking her into the ground. Her fingers grazed the newly forming bump on her forehead from were she made contact with the light pole. "Stupid pole," she muttered. Since when did she let her thoughts prevent her from noticing large inanimate objects?

"Sakura-Chan? Are you alright?" Naruto asked in concern. It was just her luck that her two teammates would have noticed her accident. Green eyes met onyx then darted away.

'_Stupid! Sasuke-Kun saw that!'_ her inner self screamed. Sakura rubbed the back of her neck uneasily and gave a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, of course I'm fine," she assured. "I just have a lot on my mind." she smiled warmly at her friend wit closed eyes. She didn't want him to see just how concerned she was. Naruto held out a hand for Sakura and she took it gratefully. Once on her own two feet, Sakura dusted the dirt off her skirt and straightened her shirt out. "Thanks Naruto."

They began to walk again, and Sakura hung back again. Walking slowly, she began to hum. The melody was soft, sad, and somewhat ire, but it comforted her all the same. Sakura wondered about the song, how she knew it. It seemed so familiar to her, like she should have known it, yet she was sure she never heard it before. She closed her eyes and began to think hard on the melody, trying to remember it's origin to no avail.

She felt a warm breeze go through her body, bring with it the strong scent of wiled flowers. Her eyes opened and she found herself in a wide open field, behind her was a thick forest and before her was a beautiful lake with a bridge crossed over it. The sun was high in the sky and Sakura felt content. She sat in the grass by the lake, dangling her legs into the cool water and inhaled the summery aroma. It was so peaceful here, however she got here.

Suddenly, an ear piercing scream filled the air. Sakura looked around to find the source but the sound was coming from all around her, almost as if she herself was the one screaming. She noticed the feel of the water was different against her skin and when she looked down, the once clear blue lake was not tainted with swirls of red. Her body Shook uncontrollably. She wanted to scream, but any noise she made was overshadowed by the other scream.

"Sakura!" someone screamed. They sounded horrified. "Sakura! Sakura! Sakura!" again and again they called, each time sounding more and more urgent.

"Sakura!"

Sakura felt herself go under the blood stained water. She thrashed about, but it felt like someone was pinning her shoulders down. The face of a crying woman loomed over her now. Sakura realized that she was the one holding her down. "Sakura!" someone was still screaming. Sakura looked up at the woman with pleading eyes, begging to be let free. She felt her grasp loosen around her shoulders and Sakura wasted no time to come up for air.

"SAKURA!"

Sakura gasped for air and her eyes sprung open. Her body twitched nervously until she recognized Sasuke's dark stare, a foreign look of fear etched his eyes but was gone the moment she noticed. Naruto was behind her patting her back, and without much thought of the consequences, she lunged forward into Sasuke's chest, seeking comfort no matter how little it might be. A hesitant arm wrapped around her back as the other stroked his hair.

Sasuke wasn't good at comforting people, so he just mimicked his mother's actions. In any other situation, he would have pushed the crying girl away, but she had been screaming so loudly after she passed out that even he, the heartless Uchiha, couldn't do that. They sat there a few moments, Sakura hugging Sasuke's chest while he gently assured her he was there, and Naruto rubbing her back sending death threats telepathically to Sasuke. He may not have that power, but Sasuke knew well enough to let Sakura take her time or deal with Naruto's wrath.

Finally, she pushed herself away, no longer trembling from the terrible dream. She figured out that she had fainted, but she didn't know why. She stood shakily and both Naruto and Sasuke offered her a hand. Sasuke retracted his almost immediately though, since Naruto was there. Sakura declined anyway.

"Are you alright Sakura-Chan?" Naruto asked, eyeing her as though she might loose consciousness at any moment again.

Sakura nodded, "Yeah, I'm alright. Arigato." she wavered a bit but steadied herself. She noticed seconds later that she was no longer on her own two feet and was actually laying against Sasuke's Back. He walked forward toward her apartment.

Sakura Blushed deeply at Sasuke's chivalrous act. He was being kind, which almost seemed impossible for the usually dark boy. He managed to keep that appearance though, even now that he had her on his back and was actually doing something nice. He was still cold. Sakura huffed quietly in frustration. He was only doing this cause he thought she was weak, she resolved. Either that or he felt he had to protect her from the demons, which he promptly decided she was the target of. It was like back in the days of their youth when he would protect her or at least watch her back. It was always as a teammate, never anything more. Her blush was gone now, she didn't want to think about it anymore.

As luck would have it, an interruption came in he nick of time. "Sakura, Isn't that one of you're kunai?" Sasuke's monotone voice broke her reverie, and she caught sight of a kunai sticking out of the ground with one of her signature sakura charms dangling from the handle. Hanging next to it was something foreign. A silver chain with an oval locket. Sakura slipped off Sasuke's back and headed cautiously to the weapon then bent down to examined the piece of jewelry for a moment. After the day she had, she wouldn't be surprised if the necklace was laced with pixie dust. The locket had an the Initials H.M. carved delicately into it.

'_I'm sure the locket is safe, but you go ahead, keep scrutinizing it,' _her inner self scoffed. Sakura rolled her eyes at herself and carefully lifted the kunai from the ground along with the necklace. '_Good thing you wasted all that time checking it out, that harmless piece of jewelry could have bit you'_ again her inner voice said with sarcasm. If it wasn't her own thoughts, Sakura would have hurt the antagonist.

"Well? What is it?" Naruto asked eagerly. His eyes gleamed with excitement.

"It's a piece of jewelry you idiot," Sasuke said. Naruto glared at Sasuke with murderous rage.

"What was that Sasuke-bastard?" Naruto hollered. Sasuke just gave his usual reply of "Hn" and turned away from the pestering blond. "Don't ignore me!" Naruto shouted, throwing a fist at Sasuke's head. Naruto feel forward through a cloud of smoke that once was Sasuke. He turned around from the ground and looked menacingly at Sasuke's smirking face who had just reappeared. "I don't like you."

"Ditto,"

'_Liars'_ Sakura thought dully. The two were best friends despite their lack of acknowledgement to the fact. It derived from their childhood rivalry. Something everyone thought they'd grow out of once Sasuke came back. Well most people thought that. Kakashi and Sakura knew better.

"Thank you two for all your entertainment, but I'm tired and I need sleep," Sakura said as she turned away. She waved a hand in the air as good bye before walking into her apartment building, kunai and locket in tow.

The two watched as their friend disappeared behind the apartment's front door. "So, stake out?" Naruto asked. Sasuke nodded and both took guard on random trees that gave them a good view of Sakura's apartment. Like hell they were going to just leave. Not after all that happened today, and if Sakura was mad in the morning, at least she'd be alive to yell at them.

Sasuke sat back against the tree staring into the window in Sakura's living room. He watched her drag herself into her room. A smile tugged at his lips, but he fought it fiercely. A noise caught his attention and his head snapped to the left. There was nothing there, yet her could sense someone else's presence. It was gone moments later.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes but shook off the feeling. He had more important issues to deal with right now. "Pst, Sasuke!" Naruto called. Sasuke turned his head to face the blond fox boy. " I Think she's on to us," he said pointing Sakura's bedroom window were she stared angrily at them.

"Go home," she said sternly. Her glare sent shivers down Naruto's back but Sasuke stayed calm.

"Fine," he said coldly. Sakura shut her window and dropped her blinds. _'Pft, yeah right,'_ Sasuke thought. He remained perched on his branch till morning.

O-o-o-oo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: I know this chapter was kind of short but I just wanted that dream sequence in there. Please review now! I'm counting on all your reviews to be motivated to update! I even put premature SasuSaku fluff in there to sweeten the deal, even though its kind of hard to see. Later!


	6. Part VI: Mission

A/N: I got a lot of reviews for that last chapter and I'm stoked! I guess people do like my story. I think I want to make it my goal to get at least 100 reviews before I finish this story.

I also wanted to tell everyone that the picture I drew that inspired this story is now online. It's a bit of a spoiler so if you don't want anything to give away the story don't look. The link is in my profile. Its kind of small so I suggest zooming in, and please feel free to leave feed back in you reviews.

Did anyone else go to Connecticonn a few weeks ago? Cause I did and man were there a lot of Naruto Cosplayers. I wish I had a costume but I didn't have any time to make one. Next year I'm so going as Sakura. I got Super cute Sasuke and Gaara plushies! Woohoo!

**Ayumi-Aldaba**: Thanks for the review. That's cool, xelagirl2 is one of my faithful reviewers! Did she tell you about he story? If so I need to thank her for promoting my story, lol. I wont answer your question cause it's a spoiler, but I will tell you that the title will make sense later.

**Dark Angelic Kitty **: Thanks. I tried really hard to get the fighting scene just right and I'm glad to know people enjoyed it. Sorry it took so long to get a SasuSaku scene out. I didn't want them to seem ooc so I was kind of holding out. I'm happy to hear you think my story is original.

**Egustogustason**: Thanks for the review! Here's an update!****

**Susakur**: Thank you! Part of the past is seen in this chapter, no fluff though, sorry. There will be some though!

**doggy thumper : **Thanks for the review. Sorry this update took so long.

**Ruriko89 **: Ok, last chapter when Sakura was walking with Naruto and Sasuke, she started humming and she kind of had a freaky dream. Then after she was woken up, Sasuke carried her home, were she found a locket. Sasuke and Naruto watched over her during the night to make sure nothing happened. Sasuke felt someone else's presence, but since it went away fast, he ignored it. Hope that helps!

**Krista :** Yeah, the dream was kind of freaky, but it serves a purpose. Sorry the update took so long.

**Shinobi Dark beak :** Glad you liked the last chapter. Thanks for the review!

**Only Secret **: Ok so the fluff was more noticeable then I thought, lol. I'm glad you liked it. Oh and the dream, I can't tell you cause it would be a major spoiler, all I'm going to say is that it will come up later. I'm also glad that you like the pace of the story, I don't want to rush it. Thanks for the review!

**Xelagirl2 **: No biggie. I'm glad you like the story. Yeah I'm stoked my comp is fixed. I have to get Microsoft word reinstalled soon though. I've been using Word Processor and it's not quite as nice. Lol. Since you mentioned it, how was your dinner? Mine was good, lol.

**Cuito **: I'm glad you liked the dream scene, I wanted to catch the readers off guard a little, lol. I liked the ending too, it took me a little while to make the best one, but I'm happy with the results.

Disclaimer: I own Naruto, I'm also a chronic liar.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Ever since Tsunade had taken her as a student, Sakura had frowned on the idea of being protected. She had enough strength to look out for herself on the battle field. With all her qualifications the pink haired konouchi was more then able to walk down a street without being fallowed by two off duty ANBU.

Apparently, however, she was the only one who thought that.

It was a little more then annoying that Sasuke and Naruto were fallowing her around like she would drop dead at any moment. It was as though they didn't think she was capable of defending herself against the "evil shop keepers" of Konoha.

She had felt their presence from the moment she woke up. They hadn't left last night when she told them to and so she started the day ticked off. They had been fallowing her all day so far thinking she didn't know. _'Idiots'_.

Sakura just clenched her fists and tried to ignore their presence. Nobody else noticed so why should it bother her, besides the fact that they aren't acknowledging her abilities.

Sakura looked into one of the shop windows admiring the different pieces of jewelry. She saw an oval shaped locket. Biting her lower lip, she removed a locket from around her neck and compared the two. They didn't look like the same craftsmanship.

The locket she had found last night attached to her kunai had intrigued her for reasons she was unsure of. She had checked every jewelry stand in town to find one like it, but came up empty handed. The locket was unlike any she had ever seen. Sakura had tried to open it last night to no avail.

She looked around the window one last time before moving away from it. That was the last jewelry store in Konoha, so the necklace came from outside the village.

As Sakura backed away from the display window, she was startled by a sudden poof behind her. She spun around wildly and glared menacingly at the man who stood there. She knew he was smiling under that damn mask of his.

"Kakashi-Sensei, what are you doing scaring me like that?" she shouted. Kakashi's visible eye crinkled as he chuckled. "you're worse then Tweddle Dee and Tweddle Dumb up there" Sakura said thrusting her thumb up to point at two trees.

A loud curse was heard from above as Naruto and Sasuke jumped down from their hiding places. "How did Sakura-Chan know we were there?" the blond boy asked with a whine in his voice. Sasuke rolled his eyes and turned away, as if to silently say he wasn't affiliated with Naruto. "We were so careful," he added.

"Baka, I've trained with you since we were twelve!" Sakura said whacking her friend in the head. "Don't you think I'd be able to recognize your movements by now?" She hit him again for good measure. "Now Kakashi-Sensei, what can I do for you?" she asked sweetly.

Kakashi's favorite book, "Itcha Itcha Paradise", was propped up in his hand, as the silver haired jounin ignored his former pink haired disciple. Apparently during the time he was being disregarded, he had pulled out his book. Sakura clenched her fists and attempted to stop herself from beating the man senseless. She was not inclined to being overlooked by some perverted book by the man who had sought her out. Hell no she wasn't.

"Kakashi-sensei, was their something you wanted to say to me?" Sakura asked through clenched teeth. One dark eye examined her over the book, and since only one eye was visible, she hoped that meant she had his full attention now.

"Ah." he answered. His eye darted back to the book quickly before closing it and looking back at Sakura. "Tsunade-Sama would like to see the four of us in her office now," he finally revealed. Sakura could have smacked him. Thinking about it for a moment she decided she probably _couldn't_ smack him, as he'd most likely dodge the attack, but that didn't quail her anger.

"That's it?" Naruto asked, voicing Sakura's, and even Sasuke's, incredulity. "what was with all the long pauses? That wasn't necessary!" he rambled on.

"Dope, neither is you're ravings." Naruto just glared in response to Sasuke's snide remark. The Uchiha smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. Sakura just shook her head in provocation. She willed herself not to notice how cool Sasuke looked when he stood in that pose. She was mad at him, her mind reminded her.

"If the Hokage wants to see us, then maybe we should go," Sakura suggested. She began to head towards HQ without glancing back at her team to assure herself they were fallowing. Besides the fact that she could sense them their, she figured if they were fallowing her all morning, then they wouldn't start to leave her alone now.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The group of four stood in Tsunade's office, waiting for the Hokage herself to show up. When the doors finally opened, all heads turned toward her and fallowed as she walked to her chair where she sat casually.

"There are rumors that a group of village less ninjas are causing havoc for people who are traveling. We don't know what kind of abilities they have, since all they are doing is stealing from passing villagers, so I'm sending you four, yes four Kakashi don't give me that look, to investigate. Don't come back until you've found something or till I send someone to get you. I want updates regularly." Tsunade folded her arms over her chest when she finished.

"You're kidding, right?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"What would I have to be kidding about?" Tsunade retaliated, her voice stern.

"Why do we need two ANBU an elite and a medic-nin for a group of thieving ninjas who probably had to resort to stealing because they had no skills? Its impractical to send all of us," Sasuke countered, his eyes shifting momentarily to Sakura.

"Are you questioning my instincts, Uchiha?"

"I wouldn't if you made this more realistic. Why would you need all of us when anyone of use could take care of it on our own."

"**This is an order, you don't get to argue it!**" Tsunade hollered slamming her hands into the desk as she stood up.

Sasuke Naruto and Sakura stared wide eyed at the Hokage who had gone from calm to scary in only a moment. Kakashi's visible eye stared at Tsunade's shaking fists, he was the only one who seemed to notice her desperation.

"Tsunade-Sama, we accept the mission," Sakura said standing up. Tsunade's glare shot to her and softened. She nodded and Tsunade smiled gently. "we'll leave tonight."

Sasuke just grunted and Naruto still had a look of confusion. He didn't understand what had just happened. Sakura did. Sakura seemed to only understand that Sasuke didn't want her on the mission, the look he shot her during the argument said everything.

"Dismissed," Tsunade said. She sat back into her chair and rested her elbows on the desk, lowering her head. The door shut as the group left. "I thought I told you to go," she said lifting her gaze, "Kakashi".

"There were no rumors, were there?"

"There are always rumors." Tsunade slouched in her seat when Kakashi looked disbelieving. Sigh. "You should know why I'm doing this. By the way, you're not off the hook for withholding information."

Kakashi chuckled slightly and leaned against the wall. "I told you where to look, that's all I could offer."

"Don't bullshit me Hatake, your name was in that file." she said, voice dangerously low.

Kakashi sighed. "Do you really think this is smart though? She was brought here for protection. To take her outside the village, especially now that they know who she is, isn't that dangerous?"

"I always wondered why you favored Sakura" Kakashi raised his eyebrow. "What did I just say? Don't try and fool me. You've always watched out for her more then the other two. I'm not stupid enough not to notice. I thought it was because you were afraid for her, because she had no special blood limit or a demon inside her. I never expected it was the complete opposite," Tsunade said. She gave an odd smile.

"Tsunade-Sama, why are you taking her out of the village?"

"If they know where she is, it's harder to protect her, no matter how strong our defenses are. Her best chance at safety is away from here, somewhere that they wont look." Tsunade looked away, but her harden gaze shot back at Kakashi suddenly. "You better make sure Sakura lives. Promise me."

Kakashi smiled slightly. "I think I made this promise once before, to someone else," he said.

Tsunade cocked en eyebrow and smirked. "I doubt the fourth threatened your life though," she replied. "By the way, don't say anything unless you absolutely have to. Not to anyone. Once danger is out of the way we can tell her."

"She'll have to know, it's her destiny. Sakura was brought here for more then just protection, she was supposed to…"

"She wont have to do anything if we can help it. Understood?" Kakashi nodded. "Good, now go. I want the four of you out of my village before sundown." Again Kakashi nodded, then he disappeared in his usual poof of smoke.

Tsunade looked back at the re-framed picture of the forth Hokage. A frown settled on her lips. "He's your student." She received no answer, but she could just here him retaliating "She's your student". Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "I need a drink."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sasuke was the first to arrive, Fallowed closely by Sakura. Fifteen minutes later, Naruto arrived. They all sat on the bridge that once served as their meeting place. The trio made themselves comfortable, assuming their teacher wouldn't be there for at least another two hours if not more. To their utter surprise, Kakashi showed up a half hour later. This action confirmed Sasuke's suspicion. _'This definitely has nothing to do with a group of low level bandits.'_

"Lets go." And with Kakashi's command the group was off.

They had been running through the forest for a few hours when the sun set. Kakashi decided it was time to set up camp. "Sasuke, set up the tents, Naruto get food, Sakura get fire wood. I need to check on something." Kakashi disappeared before anyone could dispute him.

Naruto slumped into the forest muttering something like, "lazy no good…check on something…just doesn't want to do work.." and so on. Sakura fallowed the noisy ninja, eyes rolling. Sasuke just gave his usual "Hn" and set up the tents. He made his tent right next to Sakura's. He knew he was right, that all of this somehow connected with her, and when everything happened, he wanted to make sure he was there to protect her. It was a pride thing, or that's what he told himself.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kakashi Hopped up onto a high tree branch and waited. After a while he called out quietly, "You know I know you are there." a few more moments. "Why have you been fallowing Sakura? Don't think I didn't notice her new locket." That did it.

"It's not knew, it's actually fairly old." A figure jumped down from a higher branch. "It was Hashinaka Michiko's. I think she would have wanted Sakura to have it."

Kakashi studied the figure before him. She had dark brown hair and a pair of violet eyes. "Why do I know you?" he asked, unsure of this familiarity.

"We've met once before, only you were wearing a mask that night. I take it you got the child to her new home alright." She said.

"Ah, now I remember. You are Kaori, the girl who brought Sakura to Konoha," Kakashi smiled as he finally remembered.

"They kept her name Sakura?" a smile crept over her face. "Michiko would have liked that."

"You've been watching over Sakura this whole time why make your presence known now, and only to me?" Kakashi asked.

"You're a very good ninja to have detected me," Kaori complemented.

"You're better. I only noticed when you wanted me to." Kakashi smiled.

"Why is she out of the village? My people wanted her safe, that's why they sent her to Konoha! They wanted-"

"How much do you really even know?" Kakashi calmly interrupted. "Do you know how many died for their just cause? They were children. After what they did to Michiko, I'm surprised you still live by their standards. She was your-"

"You don't know as much as you think you know" it was Kaori who interrupted this time. "My job, from the moment she was born, was to protect her. Our duty coast my sister her life. Everyone was slaughtered. I live by their last hope because it's all I have left." Kaori forced back her tears. "I will protect Sakura until she fulfills her destiny."

"Do you wish that destiny for Michiko?"

"I whish it on no one." Kaori disappeared again, and Kakashi could not sense her.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: wow, this chapter took me forever to get out. I wasn't sure if I wanted to bring Kaori out yet, but the chapter seemed so short without it so whatever. By the way, Kaori was the one who everyone kept sensing but not seeing. She also is the one who Sakura threw a Kunai at in the second chapter.

I also wanted to apologize for the long wait. Some family related stuff came up. It's all been taken care of now so hopefully I wont get any more distractions.

I know the story is confusing right now, but all questions will be solved. Here is a list of questions to ponder.

1) what was the other reason Sakura was brought to Konoha?

2) Who and what is Jaaku?

3) What is up with the locket that Sakura can't seem to open?

4) what was with that creepy dream?

5) Why did Sakura's humming bring about such a creepy dream?

6) What is Kaori's relationship with Michiko?

7) Where is Sakura really from?

8) what was Kakashi talking about when he said "Do you know how many died for their "just cause"? They were children. After what they did to Michiko, I'm surprised you still live by their standards."

9) What does the title have to do with this story?

10) and lastly, What is Sakura's mysterious destiny that Kaori thinks is so bad?

If there is another question that you want answered, please leave it in a review, I might have forgotten to mention a few.


	7. Part VII: Brewing Storm

A/N: Yay! Thunderstorm! I love storms for some weird reason and there's one going on right now so I'm super happy. Sadly I can go out and enjoy it. Yeah I'm weird, I like to lay outside during thunderstorms and hope I don't get hit by lightning. Anyway, not that I don't like rambling on about my strange habits, but this does have relevancy. I have been inspired. I was trying to come up with a good SasuSaku scene all weekend but I couldn't get any ideas. But this storm has acted as my muse. Hope everyone enjoys!

**Krista :** This chapter doesn't really get into Sakura's past yet, it actually raises a few more questions, but the answers are on their way! Keep reading!

**LitoKyomi :** I hope this update is fast enough, lol! I know there are so many questions even more are in this chapter, but don't worry I wont leave you hanging. There will be answers!

**Susakuru : ** Thanks for the review I'm glad you liked the chapter!

**doggythumper :** Thank you for the review! I'm happy to here you think my story is good!

**Ayumi-Aldaba **: I'm glad you liked the last chapter. Sorry my spelling is shabby, lol. I do most my writing around two or three in the morning so some things are sacrificed sadly. I hope you went back and read the other chapters, or at least the first one, that stuff will be important later. Anyway, thanks for the review!

**Suicidal Butterfly **: For the sake of my life I have updated, please don't kill me! Oh, BTW, you are very close on your assumption of Sakura, but I wont say anymore in the subject, you'll just have to read more to find out, tehe!

**Ellamoony **: I thought since this fic took place when team seven was a little older, Naruto and Sasuke should be ANBU, lol. And don't worry, you'll find out what Sakura's destiny is. All in good time.

**Echy **: Thanks for the review, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

**Ruriko89 **: I'm glad I could help! I don't want any of my readers too confused, lol. BTW, the question you answered, you are very close in your guess, but not quite. You're in the right "family". lol.

**Xelagirl2 **: I'm glad you're so excited about my story. Thanks for promoting my story by the way! You're cousin told me how you told her about the story. I'm glad to know it's worth talking about! And as always, thanks for the review!

**Only Secret **: I don't mind the weirdness and hyperness at all, lol. I can get the same way. I'm glad you liked the bit between Tsunade and the Fourth's picture. I just couldn't resist writing it. Also, you inspired part of this chapter, and parts to come. The whole idea between Kakashi and Sasuke! Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Nope, not going to happen. I don't have enough money to buy the rights to Naruto.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

After Kakashi returned from his little side mission, which he still hadn't explained to the team, everyone settled in to their tents. A while latter, Sakura woke up to a loud clap of thunder. Rain beet against her tent. _'Just great.'_

Sakura rolled onto her side and watched the shadows of the trees as they moved in the wind. She found herself growing restless, unable to fall back asleep. With a frustrated sigh, Sakura sat up and moved out of her tent. She was soaked instantly, but that was the furthest thing from her mind. "What is wrong with me?" she wondered aloud. The images of her dream had been flashing through her mind all night.

Sakura hopped up onto a low tree branch and she settled into a sitting position, her back leaning onto the bark. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the rain soaked air. Lately she had been feeling out of sorts. Maybe it was the demon attack, or maybe it was her weird dreams, all she knew was there was something wrong with her, and possibly Sasuke.

All day she had been receiving weird looks from him. Not the hopeful love struck looks she would send him during their youth, but cautious looks. Like he was waiting for something to happen. "Stupid Sasuke-Kun."

"I heard that." Sakura's eyes shot open and she almost fell off the branch. Quickly, Sakura regained her balance and looked down to see Sasuke himself standing below her. He was soaking wet like her, but he seemed not to notice, or care. "What are you doing out here? If you haven't noticed, there is a storm going on," he said.

"Really?" Sakura replied, a smile on her lips. "I hadn't noticed." She swung her leg around the branch and hoped down to face the dark boy. Sakura had grown so much, even Sasuke had taken notice, though not to what most the other males of Konoha had. She was stronger, more intelligent, and more self-confident. Sakura didn't blush around him like she used to, not that he cared.

Even though he recognized her abilities, he still felt compelled to take care of her. She was his teammate. He had obligations to her. Sakura was one of the few people who trusted him and had faith in him when he returned from Orochimaru. He owed her something.

"So Sasuke-Kun, why have you decided to forgo the dryness of your tent and join me in the rain?" Sakura asked. She smiled slightly, but Sasuke didn't return the gesture.

"You should stay in your tent. It's harder to watch over…the camp if not everyone is in it," Sasuke replied. Sakura cocked an eyebrow. She hadn't left the camp by much, she was actually just outside it, and since when was it Sasuke's job alone to protect the camp?

Sakura just shook her head and dismissed it. The Uchiha had always taken mattes into his own hands, so why should he change now?

"Fine, fine. I'll go back to my tent." Sakura pouted like a child being told what to do. Sasuke just grunted and followed his pink haired teammate. "I never did thank you," Sakura said, turning around slightly. Sasuke gave her a questioning look. "For the other day, when I blacked out. You could have pushed me away when I hugged you." She said, answering his silent question. He gave a nod of understanding and looked away.

"You seemed distressed. I was the first person you saw. It was a natural thing for you to seek comfort," Sasuke said. Sakura's eyebrows creased in confusion. She couldn't figure out why Sasuke was acting like this. He knew she still had feelings for him, but he treated her actions as nothing but a gesture from a grieving person.

"Sasuke-Kun-"

"You should get some sleep. We have a lot of traveling to do tomorrow," Sasuke interrupted. He mentally scolded himself. He had always made sure to keep people at arms length, even the ones he was close to. It had become so easy for him to just push people away. Sasuke's shields had become a force of habit, not a choice.

"What about you? Are you going to sleep?" Sakura asked. She stood in front of her tent, eyes gazing directly at his. Sasuke wondered to himself when she had started doing that. Being able to look him in the face was something Sakura was never able to do when she was just a "fan girl".

"Hn," and with that, Sasuke retreated into his tent. Sakura rolled her eyes and slipped into her own. She settled down into her sleeping bag and closed her eyes.

Sleep didn't come, however. After a few impatient moments, Sakura reached into her shirt and held up her locket by it's thin silver chain. The initials carved into the smooth face gleamed in the dim light. A rose vine outlined the heart with white gold plated petals. Sakura worked her pink painted thumb nail into the crease on the side and tried to work the locket open. She had no luck in her endeavor.

Sighing, Sakura dropped the locket onto her chest and rolled her head onto her pillow. She closed her eyes and began to hum herself to sleep.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura woke up to a bright blue sky, no traces of a storm were apparent. She stretched her arms into and let out a content sigh. She stopped mid stretch and examined her nails. The once pink painted fingers looked down on her without so much as a speck of color on them. She the noticed her hands were considerably smaller then she was used to.

Bolting up as fast as she could, Sakura noticed a flash of blond hair. Not blond like Naruto's, but almost white. She looked down and realized she was in a pale lavender sundress. _'What the hell is going on here?'_ Sakura screamed, only to realize she had no control over her mouth.

Sakura felt her head turn against her will and came face to face with a man. He had a gentle smile on his face. Sakura began to run to him. She had no control here, as though she was watching this scene from another person's point of view.

The man she ran to opened his arms wide, and soon Sakura found herself in the midst of a fatherly hug. The man smelled like wildflowers, which seemed odd for a man. Sakura's foreign fingers wrapped around the man's large hand as she practically dragged him to the lake in front of them. Sakura peered into the lake, looking at the rainbow colored fish, however, her eyes focused on her reflection. Staring back at her, was not the pink haired konouchi she knew herself to be. Instead, it was a young girl, no older then three, with white/blond hair, snowy complexion, and stunning emerald eyes. She looked up at the man above her, knowing that he was this young girls father, though he looked nothing like her, and she felt a smile spread across her face.

"_What's happening? Where am I? Sasuke-Kun? Naruto? Kakashi-Sensei?" _Sakura's mind screamed. Just then, the sound of a katana going through flesh was heard. Sakura's body turned and stared, horror stricken by the sight in front of her. The man who she believed to be her young host's father, laid on the grass, blood seeping from the wound on his back, as the katana was drawn out of his body.

Sakura shook with fear as her eyes stared at the face of his killer's. That familiar carving on his forehead, the same dark aura that replaced his eyes. This man's killer was Jaaku. Sakura heard a familiar scream. The one from her previous dream. She realized now that it was coming from this young girl. Sakura saw a bright light form around her, and as it slowly dimmed, a snowy white feather floated in front of her face.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Sakura!" Kakashi's familiar voice was the first thing Sakura heard as she regained consciousness. She looked from his face, to Naruto's, and then to Sasuke's. "Sakura, what happened?" Kakashi asked, concern evident on his voice. His hands gently released her shoulders as she sat up.

"Why were you screaming Sakura-Chan?" Naruto asked. His bright blue eyes were wide with fear. "It was horrible, we thought you were being attacked," he told her.

Sakura's eyes again darted to Sasuke, who seemed to be looking at her shoulder were Kakashi had recently had his hand. There was something odd about his look, almost apprehensive, or something. Sakura shot her eyes down to inspect the area, but found only the slight glimmer from the chain. Sakura bit her lip.

'_Why would he be mad about the locket?'_ Sakura tried to reason with herself, but she couldn't help but suddenly feel very foolish for wearing it. She had no idea were it came from or who it belonged to, how dare she wear it.

"Sakura?"

Sakura looked up at Sasuke at the mention of her name. "S-Sasuke-kun?" she responded.

His brow nit together. He seemed to study her every movement. Sakura felt uneasy under his keen stare. Luckily her attention was drawn away.

"Sakura, what happened?" Kakashi questioned once more. His visible eye was filled with trepidation.

"Gomen. I didn't mean to worry you. I…had a bad dream." It wasn't a lie, it just wasn't the whole truth, Sakura reasoned with herself. Sakura knew that her dream was more then she let on, but until she could figure it out, she didn't want to worry her teammates. Besides, Sasuke would think she was weak if she let a dream bother her too much.

Sasuke eyed Sakura charily. The way her voice wavered when she gave her apology spoke volumes to him. She was hiding something. Naruto didn't seem to notice, but Sasuke was sure their teacher had. "Well the, we had better get back to sleep," the silver haired jounin decided. Sasuke's eyes darted to Kakashi's back and narrowed.

Sakura watched as her team left her tent. Naruto gave her a weak smile of comfort before disappearing behind her tent. She let out a deep sigh and dropped her head back to her pillow. She closed her eyes and pictured Jaaku again. He seemed different in the dream, like he was more, _human_.

Another question popped into her mind. _' Why did Jaaku kill that girls father? And why am I dreaming about it?'_ Sakura buried her face into her pillow and let out a deep breath.

Unbeknownst to her, Sasuke had decided to forgo sleep for a more "important" activity. Waiting until the other's were back in their tents, the Uchiha boy, returned to Sakura's tent and stationed himself just outside the opening. The excuse Sakura gave for her screams seemed somewhat forced, and he was not buying it. Whatever was going on with Sakura, Sasuke was going to find out.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Not far from the Konoha ninjas' camp, Kaori sat in a tree. Her hands covered her ears as tears fell from her eyes. She had heard the screams, but unlike the others, she knew they were not Sakura's. She knew what Sakura was seeing in her dreams, and it crushed her.

"I wish I could take your pain away. It's only the beginning for her."

Kaori began to sob quietly into hands as the dawn stretched out over the camp site.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: Another chapter filled with questions to be answered. Like who was the girl from Sakura's dream, and why was Jaaku there? Also, what is Kaori's problem? I promise to answer everything before the story ends.

The next chapter has at least on answer to the many questions you all have, but I wont say which one.

I'd like to take this time to really thank all my reviewers. This is about the time in a story when I get writer's block and delete it, but I have so many ideas for it that I don't think I could delete it if I wanted to! Plus with everyone's support I really feel the need to finish this story, so really, thank you.

As always, please review!


	8. Part VIII: Partial Destiny

A/N: I've been sick for about two days now, and I'm still recovering, so I hope this chapter is ok. I have a pounding headache and looking at the screen is killing me right now, so please don't be mad is my writing is a little off.

**Xelagirl2**: Deleting this story is the furthest thing from my mind right now so don't be depressed. As long as I keep getting such nice reviews I'll keep writing. You are so nice! It makes me smile to know that my story is good enough to talk about. You deserve hugs! Thank you!

**Ayumi-Aldaba**: Thank you for the review, I'm glad to hear you read the first chapter, hopefully the story is making more sense now.

**EarthboundAngel**: Thank you for he review. Also, I like your name, lol.

**ELIE**: Thank you! I'm glad you have questions cause I plan to answer them all! This chapter has a few of those answers.

**Krista**: Did I beat the turtle? Lol. Sorry the dream was confusing, basically Sakura was watching Jaaku kill some little girl's dad through the girls eyes, hope that helps. This chapter doesn't explain Sakura's past really, but it explains something.

**Susakuru**: I'm glad you like my story, thanks for the review!

**doggythumper**: I update fast cause one of my reviewers threatened to kill me, lol. Also I like to make people happy. Thanks for the review.

**Only Secret **: PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! I promise I wont delete the story. I can't live without my Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke-kun, and Itachi goodies! At least I still have Gaara-kun! huggeles Gaara plushie you are the second person to threaten my life for the sake of this story, good to know it's made an impression. Thank you for you're loving review, lol!

**Ruriko89 **: Sorry for the confusion last chapter. Sakura basically had another dream and it took place in the same field as the first dream (connection anyone?). The dream was about Jaaku killing some girl's dad and Sakura watching it all through the girl's eyes. That's why Kaori said the screams weren't Sakura's. Kaori knows about Sakura's dreams. Hope that helps! If you have anymore confusion, as always, feel free to ask!

**WARNING! **I'd like to prepare you all by warning you that this chapter answers one of the questions that I know you are being plagued by. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: If I had a million dollars I still think the rights to Naruto would be too expensive.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The day had moved slowly as the team from Konoha made their way to the designated location. Sakura calculated that they would arrive in about an hour. This place was desolate, hardly anyone traveled around here. '_Whoever these bandits are, they sure don't know anything about location,'_ Sakura thought to herself.

"Hey, Kakashi-Sensei, what are we doing out here?" Naruto whined. "We haven't seen anybody for hours. What was Tsunade-Sama thinking?" He continued to complain angrily. Sasuke rolled his eyes and ignored Naruto's annoying gripes. He may have been thinking the same thing, but since they were already here, there was no point in mentioning it.

"Naruto, our orders were to stake out the area. If you want to go back and question the Hokage, feel free to do so," Kakashi said. Naruto froze at that. The idea of opposing the Godaime was not something the fox boy was willing to think about.

Sakura noticed that Sasuke was keeping back behind the group. Slowing her pace, Sakura allowed Naruto and Kakashi to get further ahead and let Sasuke catch up to her. The two walked together in silence for a while. Sasuke didn't seem to pay any attention to his pink haired teammate, but he was actually somewhat relieved she was now walking with him. He wanted to keep a watchful eye on her, but he didn't want to be barefaced about it.

"Sasuke-Kun?" Sakura faced him with a curious look on her face. "Why did you fallow me last night?" She asked. Sasuke mentally tensed. He did not want to have this conversation.

"I thought I made myself clear last night. You were out of he camp and I can't look over the team effectively if you aren't there." Sasuke's answer was robotic. That was the thought going through Sakura's head. She let out a frustrated sigh. Some where in the back in of her mind, she had hoped there was something more in his actions.

"If you insist," she said. She brought her thumb nail up to her lips and bit it gently.

"Sakura?" Sasuke stopped walking and faced Sakura. The pink haired girl jerked to a stop, her eyes wide with shock at her teammate's sudden motions. "What happened to you last night? It was more then a bad dream that had you screaming," he said, gripping her arm.

"S-Sasuke!" Sakura yelped in surprise. Sasuke mistook her surprise for pain and removed his hand. "I told you, it was…it was just a dream," Sakura said. She cast her eyes down and bit her thumb nail.

"It sounded like a nightmare. You've been having a lot of those lately." Sakura wasn't pleased by the way the conversation had turned.

"It was just a bad dream."

"Don't lie to me Sakura, you're bad at it." Sasuke smirked at Sakura's pout. "Would you just tell me already, I'm not going to just take your word for it." Sakura gave out a frustrated growl.

"Fine," she said in defeat. "I had a dream about a girl. She seemed really young. Long blond hair, emerald green eyes, she was like an angel." Sakura said, reminiscing about her dream. Sasuke cleared his throat to gain her attention. "Eh, anyway. She was in some field. A forest behind her, a lake in front. Her father was there two," Sakura said.

Sasuke's eyebrows knitted together. "This doesn't sound like a nightmare, Sakura."

"That's not the end." Sakura bit irritably. She didn't want to be talking about this to begin with, being criticized was not any help. "Jaaku was in the dream. He killed the girl's father." Sakura explained. "The weird part was that I seemed to be watching the dream through the girl's eyes." Sasuke shot her a look. "What?"

"I told you Jaaku was after you," Sasuke answered smugly. Sakura rolled her eyes. "Why else would you be having dreams about him?"

"That makes no sense. Just cause some creepy dude freaked me out enough to have a bad dream about him doesn't mean anything. He isn't after me," Sakura said.

"If Jaaku is connected to the events in your dream, wouldn't that connect you as well, seeing as you are the one having the dreams?" Sasuke reasoned.

Sakura bit her lower lip contemplating Sasuke's argument. All the facts did seem to add up. Sakura shook her head. She didn't want to be the target of a group of demons. That was crazy. This kind of thing didn't happen to someone like her.

She couldn't deny it though. Sasuke had he right idea, she was smart enough to see it. Sakura groaned loudly. "This sucks. Why are a bunch of demons out for my blood?"

"I can answer that." Sakura and Sasuke looked back at the voice calling them and were met with a powerful wind that threw them into a tree. Once the attack subsided, the duo fell to the ground. Sakura's head snapped up and saw their attacker.

"Jaaku, what are you doing here?" she demanded. Jaaku's ever present smirk taunted her.

"You have a question, I have an answer," he replied. His voice was slimy and Sasuke found himself very suspicious. Standing up along with Sakura, Sasuke stood in front. He wanted to be prepared for anything.

"If you have something to say, I suggest you say it. Otherwise I will kill you," Sasuke threatened. Jaaku continued to smirk. He disappeared in a cloud of smirk and reappeared behind Sasuke. Jaaku reached out for the Uchiha's neck, but Sasuke dodged and tried to kick the assailant.

Jaaku grabbed Sasuke's leg and threw him to the ground. To ensure a lack of fight, Jaaku's foot pressed into Sasuke's chest. He leaned forward and said, "You can't kill what is already dead." Jaaku removed his foot and walked away a bit. Sasuke stood back up and again stepped in front of Sakura. The pink haired konouchi finally spoke up.

"You said you had an answer for my question. Why are you after me?" She demanded.

"Because my dear, your blood is a very important tool," Jaaku stated.

Sasuke growled from the back of his throat. He didn't like playing games, and this one was getting on his nerves. He didn't like that Jaaku was able to sneak up on him, but this was even more annoying. "What do you mean her blood is a tool," he asked. His patients running thin.

"You really don't know anything about this girl do you?" Jaaku laughed. "You have no idea what she is the key to."

"Key?" Sasuke questioned. His arm wrapped around Sakura who stood behind him.

"Yes. Her blood is that of those with wings." Jaaku smiled at the two confused faces staring at him.

"I have the blood of those with wings? What does that mean?" Sakura asked. She moved away from Sasuke a bit, now fully interested in what the demon had to say.

"It means that your blood will purge the earth of mankind." The answer was so calmly given, as though it was nothing. Sasuke choked slightly on this information. He turned to Sakura whose face had become ghostly pale. Her eyes were wide with shock and her body was trembling. Her mind was screaming that it was all lies, but nothing calmed her.

"No, that isn't true-"

"You fool," Jaaku interrupted. "You have no idea how long I have waited. I will kill you and end this cycle once and for all. I refuse to wait for another! Eighteen years have passed since I lost my last chance," he yelled. Suddenly, as though water had been splashed on him, Jaaku regained his calmness. "However, you are no good to me while you are in this state."

Jaaku advance in Sakura, who was too shocked to move, but was stopped by Sasuke. "Not another step, got it?" Sasuke growled. Jaaku grabbed Sasuke's collar and threw him to the side. Sasuke's body connected with the hard ground. When he tried to get up he realized that a shadow, like the demons who attacked Konoha, had appeared below him. Hazy black arms reached up and held him down.

Jaaku stood in front of Sakura now. Her mind was screaming at her to run, get far away, but her body was frozen in sheer terror. Jaaku's scaly hand wrapped around her throat and lifted her off the ground. Still Sakura didn't fight. Her inner self was shouting non stop. Jaaku tightened his grip. "Lets see if I can't coax those wings of yours out."

That was when Sakura snapped out of her trance. '_He's going to kill me_,' she realized. Sakura tried to wiggle free of Jaaku's grip, but she was unable to. A searing pain shot through her shoulder blades as her eyes rolled back. Jaaku's image faded out as a bright light enveloped her body.

"Sakura," a soft voice called out. Sakura looked around for the source bout found nothing. "Sakura." Sakura's eyes then focused on the outline of a young woman, a little older then herself. "Sakura," she called out. Sakura realized that the woman before her was the little girl from her dream, only older.

"Sakura, you need to go back now," The woman said. She held Sakura's hand. Sakura felt something cold slip into her palm. "Go back!"

Sakura felt Jaaku's grip fail and she fell to the ground. Behind her Kakashi, Naruto and Sasuke were fighting the shadowy demons. Sakura's eyes darted to Jaaku who was fighting a woman who seemed vaguely familiar to her. The woman was brunette and had violet eyes. She was removing a Katana from Jaaku's arm.

The demon winced in pain. This surprised Sakura. During her fight with him, Jaaku showed no signs of soreness, but this woman was able to cause him pain. "Its been a while Kaori," Jaaku said, nursing his wound. "How is Otone?"

Kaori lunged at Jaaku with anger. "I'll destroy you for what you did to her. I wont let you have Sakura either!" Kaori attacked again but Jaaku moved out of the way. Their fight continued on.

Sakura just sat there, like she was in her own little world watching everyone fight. The sound around her seemed like it was coming from another room, everything was muffled. Her green eyes dropped to her hand were she felt something that was once cold heat up against her skin. Opening her palm, Sakura found an oval piece of white gold with ridges on the back, as though it connected to something.

Sakura's ears popped and all the sound came through finally. Her head shot up to see the fight going on around her. She realized what was going on. After she passed out, Kakashi and Naruto arrived with that woman. They were fighting for her.

"Don't get in my way Kaori," Jaaku threatened. His hand rubbed the side of his cheek that had a large bloodless gash across it. Kaori used her thumb to wipe away the blood from her lips.

"I shouldn't have killed you eighteen years ago, it gave you too much power," Kaori said. She kicked Jaaku in the ribs and pinned him to the ground. She slammed the hilt of her katana into the symbol on his forehead. To her surprise, blood trickled down from the wound. Kaori's surprise turned to amusement. "It didn't work."

The demon below her sneered at her but didn't attack or speak. She had found his weakness. Jaaku and the other demons disappeared. "Kaori?" Kakashi looked up at the brunette. She turned to face him to, a sad smile on her face.

"That Jaaku sure knows how to let someone down easy," she said. Kakashi looked confused for a moment but Kaori nodded at Sakura. The silver haired jounin looked at his student who was shaking now and understood. "He told her."

"Everything?" Kakashi asked. Kaori shook her head. "She deserves to know." Kakashi turned away and joined his team. Kaori just watched from afar. She was content that Sakura was safe for now, and was turning to leave when something the blond boy said caught her ears.

"Ne, Sakura-Chan? When did you get a tattoo?" Naruto asked. Kaori swung around and saw clearly what he had been referring to. Sakura's shirt had two rips down the back that covered the length of her shoulder blades. On the exposed flesh were two neatly painted wings.

Kaori wanted to vomit. Sakura looked up at Naruto with confusion. "Naruto, I don't have any tattoos," she stated. Kakashi's eyes darted to the paled female behind the group. Kaori was scared, that was for sure. He would have to question her later.

"No, seriously Sakura-Chan, you have wings on your back." Naruto insisted. Sakura reached around her back and let her fingers trace the marked skin gently. Flashes of children's faces flooded her mind, each of them surrounded by a white light. Sakura removed her hand from her back. She felt dizzy now. It was as though the world was spinning around her. The last thing she saw was Sasuke's concerned eyes before she passed out.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Figures moved around it what looked like the remnants of a village. Once beautiful homes were nothing but charred foundations. This was the grave site of the men, women, and children that lived in the Village of Tengoku. No human could live in the wasteland that was once known as heaven on earth due to the overwhelming stench of blood and the lingering presence of death. It was the perfect place for demons, however.

"Akuma, why did you tell her? If she know about her power it could ruin-"

"You idiot. I didn't tell her everything. I told her that her blood would destroy mankind, but I didn't tell her about the alternative," Jaaku scolded. He turned to his subordinate. "Don't question me. I know what I'm doing."

"I didn't mean to be out of line." the lower demon apologized. The demon was weaker then Jaaku and he was not willing to fight his snake like superior.

"It's truly wonderful really," Jaaku proceeded. He smiled in satisfaction. "Kaori is to afraid to tell the girl anything. Sakura will only know the downside to her heritage, and it will destroy her. That makes it easier to kill her." Jaaku's smirk then disappeared. "I was so close. Her wings were almost there. Damn Kaori."

The lower demon spoke up again. "There are other ways to break a human's spirit though, why did you have to tell her?"

Jaaku stared menacingly down at the demon. With a flick of his wrist, Jaaku sliced his subordinate's head off. He smiled. "How can an angel fly, if she doesn't know she has wings?"

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: well that's chapter eight. This one took me forever to get out, and no not because of writer's block. My comp had some weirdness that made it shut down every five seconds so I kept losing all my work. --;. Anyway, I finally got the situation under control and I did an all nighter to get this chapter finished up because it may be a week or so before I can update again.

You see, I'm heading up to Vermont on Sunday to be with my grandparents for a few days and when we (my dad, sister, and me) get back, my sister is moving back in. So I'll probably spend the rest of the week moving boxes from her apartment. (She doesn't want to continue her lease since she's moving with her boyfriend to N.Y. in December)

Well, now that you know what's going on in my life (not that it has any relevance to the story) please review. When I come home I want to be surprised with loads of love from all my readers!

Later!


	9. Part IX: Wake Up

A/N: Hey everyone! I'm back from Vermont and I'm super psyched to be writing this chapter. I've had so many ideas floating through my head but every time I try to write this chapter I hate it. I don't want to give everything away but I keep doing it. I hope this chapter comes out alright.

Also, I would like to rant. I have 3463 hits and only 74 reviews. Does that strike anyone else as odd? Please review! I love to hear my reader's responses. Even if you don't like my story, I'd like to know why. So please review, for the good of my pride.

Thank you to all my Readers who did review!

**Shinobi Darkbeak**: I'm glad you are back! So much has happened in these last few chapters, lol. That's good you that you are still interested in the story. Thanks as always for the review!

**Krista**: Awesome! I'm glad you understood the chapter, I know I'm usually confusing. Sorry the update took so long but I was in Vt. I'm back now though!

**Aroz **: Thanks for the review, I'm glad you like my story!

**Sakuranime**: Gosh no, I don't find it annoying at all. I love that people want me to update quickly. It tells me people really love my writings. I don't know if Naruto will get a big romance with Hinata, but the relationship will definitely be mentioned. I like that coupling too! I loved your story, it was so cute! Thank you for the review.

**doggythumper **: The count is up to two now. Two threats on my life. I don't know if I should be flattered or scared, lol. I'm glad you liked the chapter and thanks for the review!

**Ruriko89 **: I'm glad you liked the chapter. I hope I surprised you with Sakura's destiny, lol.

**Only Secret **: I'm happy to lend my services of distraction from your math. (that's my least favorite subject) You are such a kind reviewer! I love it. While you enjoy this chapter I will go enjoy my latest Itcha Itcha, complements of you!

**Xelagirl2**: You are sooooo nice! Thank you for your kind words! It's praise like that that's going to give me a big head, lol. Seriously though, thank you. BTW, I had fun in Vt. and I was working on this chapter while I went up there, but I brought my laptop instead of pen and paper, lol. Once more THANK YOU!

Disclaimer: …You already know so I'm not saying it.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura's eyes fluttered opened slowly and adjusted to the dark. A small lantern flickered slightly casting an orangey glow against her dull yellow tent. She recognized the surroundings instantly but she felt no comfort from that.

The memories of her last encounter with Jaaku burned in her head. Sakura had wished that her fainting spell would have left her with scattered recollections, but sadly she remembered everything clearly. Her stomach churned with an uneasy feeling. Sakura stared down at her hands. They were the same ones she had always had, but they looked so foreign to her. The pale skin creased as her fingers curled onto fists that shook.

"Why.." she couldn't finish the question. Tears formed at the corners of her jade eyes before making a path down her snowy cheek. Sakura's body trembled as a cold feeling racked her body. A painful thought erupted in the back of her mind. "Am I…I'm not human?"

Sakura mulled over this thought, though it was hard to concentrate with the pounding noise in her ears. '_Is that my heart?'_ Sakura pulled her knees up to her chest burying her forehead into her knees. So many thoughts were forcing their way into her conscious demanding to be dealt with all at once. Her slender fingers ran through her hair and grasped fistfuls of the stringy substance. She pulled lightly on the pink locks as her body rocked slowly. Sakura focused on the pain emanating from her scalp trying to forget the horrible feeling and the ache in her heart.

Nothing saved her from her despair. Tears streamed down her face fasted and faster, Sakura could no longer hold them back. Her hands slipped from her mess of hair and scratched against her face. Sakura's nails soon found her arms and dug into the flesh. Her rocking became more intense. Her breaths became faster and more erratic.

'_Calm down, please calm down…please no more thoughts, stop, Stop, STOP!'_ Sakura's mind screamed. Her hands went back to her face and rubbed fiercely. She held back her screams. She didn't want anyone to see her like this. Her tears began to slow down and her breathing became normal again. Sakura stopped rocking as her body relaxed. Calmness washed over her and Sakura removed her nails from her arms. Deep divots marked were she pressed.

Biting her lower lip, Sakura contemplated her next move. Her mind was no longer yelling at her so thinking became more clear. She was relived her rational side was taking over.

"I have to find Kakashi-sensei. He can help me," Sakura decided out loud. With her mind made up, Sakura stood up from her knapsack and stepped out of her tent. She looked around the camp sight allowing her eyes to adjust to the night's darkness. Sakura spotted Kakashi's tent and dashed off in its direction. The sound of hushed voices caught her attention and she slowed her pace. One of the voices was definitely her sensei's, the other was vaguely familiar.

"…so now she knows," Kakashi said. Sakura leaned against the tent and looked around the corner. Her sensei stood with his back against a tree, his posture was slouched as usual yet Sakura could tell there was a seriousness to him. "It's to be expected. She would have eventually found out."

There was a woman across from him. Sakura recognized her after squinted. It was Kaori, the one who was fighting Jaaku before. "She never would have had to know if I wasn't an idiot. If I never killed Jaaku he wouldn't even bother going after her." Sakura saw the pain in Kaori's eyes and heard it in her voice.

'_Why does she care?'_ Sakura thought to herself. She continued to listen in on the conversation. It was obvious they were talking about her if they had mentioned Jaaku.

"Don't blame yourself, Kaori," Kakashi said comfortingly. Kaori shook her head. "How were you supposed to know that he wanted you to kill him? It isn't a natural thing." Kakashi's voice did not console her in the least. Kaori shifted on her feet. Sakura thought she looked different, less confident then when she fought Jaaku.

"It doesn't matter. My job was to protect Sakura and I let my anger get the best of me. I wanted revenge, and he expected it." Kaori looked away, toward the thicker parts of the forest. "He used Otone and I to get what he wanted," Kaori's voice shook.

"It was a devious trick. He knew that killing Otone would make you kill him, despite your reservations." Kakashi stepped away from the tree's body and walked over to Kaori. He place a hand on her shoulder witch drew her eyes up to his. "You were right, he still had human blood in him that night," he said. "But he provoked you to kill him. That act drained his blood and his humanity." Kaori pulled her shoulder away, not in disgust but in realization.

"No, it wasn't completed. When I fought him I found out he still had a bit of humanity in him. Below the seal on his forehead, there was blood," Kaori said. An air of hope filled her thoughts.

"Then why would he go after Sakura? He has no use for her until he's completely demon I thought." Kakashi's question cause Kaori's hope to disappear. "That can only mean he's found away around it," the jounin said.

Kaori felt her hopes shatter. "I have to stop him, if he gets his hands on her, every human will be slaughtered." Kaori said. Sakura noticed she was beginning to regain the confidence she had fighting Jaaku. "I wont let him have his genocide!" she said raising her voice. "My people-"

"Your people should not preach against genocide when they are guilty of the same crime," Kakashi said spitefully. Kaori's eyes shot open then narrowed in anger.

"You have no right to-"

"I have every right to judge them," Kakashi said, cutting Kaori off again. "They killed the others, the ones with wings," he said. Sakura watched in somewhat astonishment. Her Sensei rarely showed so much anger. "They were only children!" he shouted. Sakura sucked in a sharp breath at Kakashi's out burst. She was also shocked by what he said. How could people be so cruel as to kill a child? "They took those lives out of fear and hid their actions behind a mask of righteousness. They were cowards," Kakashi said. He heaved a pent up sigh and leaned back against the tree.

Kaori looked at the man before her with hatred, but the forced anger dissolved into sadness. "I know you are right, but they are still my people."

"You still strive for their approval even though they are all gone now. After what they did to Michiko, she was your cousin," Kakashi's voice took his normal calmness. "They used Michiko to breed, create a human that had her abilities." Sakura's mind was racing now with new questions. Who was Michiko? Who was her child? What the hell was Jaaku really?

Kaori sank down to her knees, her strength gone now. "She was Tengoku's last hope, her daughter. I don't think they knew her birth would take Michiko's life." Kakashi watched the woman before him as she wept. He felt pity for her. "The Village I came from was massacred eighteen years ago by Jaaku and his hoard of demons," she said. Kaori was not the killing kind. She had wanted to save Jaaku from the beginning. Kaori didn't understand that Jaaku, though once human, had no soul just evil.

"Sakura will not be used to destroy humans. She would never let that happen, Sakura is too compassionate to let herself be used that way," Kakashi said. Sakura looked at her sensei with awe. She wondered if it were true, if she really had a choice in the matter. "She could always-"

"No!" Kaori interrupted this time, shocking him and Sakura. "I could never ask her to do that. I may want to live up to my people's wishes, but I refuse to use Sakura like that. I will find another way." The brunette stared firmly at Kakashi.

The silver haired man looked back at her almost as intently. "I didn't say you should ask. However, considering Sakura's personality, she might make the decision on her own, even if the out come would have…similar side effects." Kakashi seemed disturbed by that thought.

Sakura's mind was going out of control. Side effects? Was there really an alternative? Sakura backed away from the conversing duo. She felt as though absorbing any more shocks would cause an aneurysm. Sakura spun around, ready to fly back to her tent and hide beneath her covers, but instead she ran into quite possibly the last person she wanted to see, which was a first.

Uchiha Sasuke had heard everything Jaaku told Sakura, and she didn't want to think what his reaction would be. Would he hate her now? Would he think she was a monster? Sakura wanted to run far away from his piercing gaze but the firm hold he had on her shoulders prevented that.

"Sasuke-Kun?" she called timidly. His usually icy glare was in place making him completely unreadable. Sakura shuddered for the first time under his sharp eyes focused on her. Sakura cowered, ready to pull away and run, but Sasuke's hand suddenly grabbed hers and he led her away from he camp.

"Sas…Sasuke-kun?" Again she called. His silence greeted her. The walked quickly through the trees away from the camp, Sakura stumbling along. She lengthened her stride to keep in step with her escort but still found herself tripping over the tree roots that dwelled above the soil.

Finally they stopped and Sasuke spun his pink haired partner around to face him. "Sasuke-kun, what are you doing?" Sakura asked helplessly. She was beyond freaked out at this point. Sasuke was stronger then her by a lot and if he was going to kill her, he could easily. '_that's probably why you're here. He thinks your going to destroy everything and now he has to stop you,'_ Inner Sakura screamed shrilly.

That notion was soon squashed as Sasuke released his grip on Sakura's wrist and sat down. His hands were propped in front of his face and he motioned with his eyes for her to sit as well. Defiantly not a fighting stance. Sakura felt a sigh of relief escape her lips as she sat down causing Sasuke too give her an odd look. She just smiled sweetly at him.

"Is what Jaaku said true?" Sasuke asked, straight to the point as always. Sakura sat there for a moment, shocked at his boldness.

The question sunk slowly sunk in. Sakura had been so worried about the consequences of Jaaku's words that she never really questioned it. Maybe it was all a lie. Inner Sakura wasn't buying it though, and neither was Sakura. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew it was true.

"H-hai. I believe that Jaaku spoke the truth," Sakura said. She lowered her head to avoid Sasuke's intense stare. She couldn't handle it if he looked at her with disgust. She didn't mind his look of annoyance toward her, she was accustom to it, but never in her life had she been looked at like something disgusting. She was sure Sasuke was looking at her that way now.

Sasuke contemplated the facts in his head. He had also heard Kaori and Kakashi's conversation. The two hadn't notice him or Sakura because the Uchiha prodigy did a jutsu to hide them. He knew Sakura wouldn't have thought of it in her state of mind.

Sakura watched him now, no longer afraid of his stare since it wasn't focused on her anymore. Finally he spoke. "If that's so, then I will have to protect you," Sasuke decided. Sakura looked at him in utter shock. She was torn between feeling happy that Sasuke didn't hate her and feeling angry he was ignoring her abilities. She was capable of looking after herself.

"Sasuke-Kun, that very kind, but I can take care of myself," Sakura insisted. Sasuke didn't acknowledge her refusal. "Look," she said more harshly this time. "I don't need anyone to look out for me like some lost child," Sakura said. Her voice was low but dangerous. Sasuke was shocked, even though his face remained passive. "I'm just as capable of taking care of myself as you are and I don't appreciate every one babying me," She continued. Sakura felt all her frustrations coming out. Her anger and confusion were blinding her. She didn't care who she was yelling at, she just needed to let the pent up emotions out. "Besides, didn't you here Jaaku, clearly I'm strong enough to fight if I can wipe out every one. Monsters don't need a knight in shinning armor to look after them!" she screamed.

Sasuke was beginning to feel anger boil under his skin. He stood up and took three strides over to Sakura. His hand clamped forcefully around her arm and dragged her up to face him. Sakura's previous rage turned into fear. Sasuke had never acted out like this towards her. "Shut up!" he growled. His face was close enough to Sakura's that she could feel his breath against her skin. His eyes stared unwaveringly into hers.

"You aren't a monster, you are a konouchi of Konoha. Nothing that you have heard in the past few hours changes that," Sasuke said squeezing Sakura's arm. She winced in pain, but the feeling didn't last as Sasuke unconsciously loosened his grip. "Just because you have a destructive power doesn't make you a monster. If that was true, then I'm a monster and so is Naruto, and Kakashi-sensei. Is that what you think?" He asked.

Sakura blinked. That thought had never occurred to her before. Had she hurt Sasuke's feelings? Her eyes studied Sasuke's for a long time before she finally answered. "No." It was simple and true. Sakura felt ashamed for her behavior. Sasuke release her arm and the skin tingled were the warmth was removed.

"I still want to look after you. After the last fight with Jaaku, I don't think its safe for you to be alone," Sasuke said. Sakura nodded in reply. She had suddenly lost her voice. "He knows a lot more about you then he's letting on, and he's using the information to catch you off guard."

Sakura again nodded. She needed to know everything before she fought Jaaku again, otherwise he would be able to surprise her again. The pink konouchi slapped her forehead. "How am I supposed to figure this out? I don't know anything about Jaaku," she whined.

Sasuke smirked secretly. He wouldn't say he was happy, more like relieved, that Sakura was acting more like herself. He listened to her complain a little more before making a suggestion. "Kaori might know something. She seems to know Jaaku and what his goals are," he said.

"That's a start. I also need to figure out those weird dreams," Sakura added. Sasuke cocked an eyebrow. "I've been having more. I know the blond girl from my dreams is important, but I don't know who she is. I saw the faces of other children when I touched the…um, the wings." Sakura felt nervous talking about her mysterious new tattoo. Sasuke wanted her to continue. "I, well I think they were the others. The ones that had wings too. Kaori said…" Sakura stopped.

The children with wings were all killed. Why wasn't she? Sakura thought about this. Then there was that woman Kaori was talking about. Her cousin Michiko. She was also kept alive, but to breed a human with wings. What did that mean? Michiko died giving birth to the human with wings. What happened to that child?

"Sakura?" Sasuke's voice broke her reverie. Sakura bit her thumbnail. The pink polish began to chip.

"Did you hear everything Kakashi-sensei and Kaori-san were saying?" She asked. If he heard the whole conversation, maybe she could find an explanation.

"I heard about as much as you did. Why?" Sasuke asked.

"I think their may be another person like me, one with wings. Maybe they know something," Sakura said. She felt her heart beat race as she thought of the possibilities of another with wings, one that could answer her questions. "Kaori said Michiko had a child," se continued.

Sasuke stared skeptically at his companion. "She also said the village was destroyed. How do we know the child survived?" Sasuke asked. Sakura gave him a dull look.

"You are a human right? If Michiko's kid was killed by the demons, wouldn't it be a little hard for you to be alive?" Sakura reasoned. A smirk graced her face when Sasuke said nothing in retaliation. "What if Michiko survived the destruction then gave birth? Kaori obviously would have taken care of the kid if she was the last living relative. So she's got to know the whereabouts of her second cousin."

"Possibly. I think we should head back now though," Sasuke decided. "You should probably get some sleep. We'll ask Kaori some questions tomorrow." Sakura agreed and the two walked back through the forest, slower then before.

Sakura walked behind Sasuke. She was relieved that Sasuke didn't hate her or think of her as a monster. Actually she was ecstatic about that. Sakura was now realizing the perks of all this. Sasuke would be protecting her, which meant he would be around her a lot. Not only that, but Sasuke seemed to treat her with more equality now. More like a friend. If it wasn't such an inappropriate time, she probably would have done a happy dance.

Sasuke navigated the duo through the trees, making sure the path was void of upturned roots that might hinder their travels. He felt Sakura behind him and noticed her presence seemed much lighter now, like she was relieved. Sasuke felt something in his stomach flutter, but he shrugged it off as anxiousness. He was looking forward to finding out the whole truth, that was all.

Finally the camp was in sight and Sakura walked back to her tent. She whispered a good night to her new bodyguard before disappearing behind the cloth. Sasuke sat outside her tent for a while. Is elbows were propped against his knees and his hands linked together in front of his face.

One of the things Sakura had said bothered him. "_I think their may be another person like me, one with wings."_ Sakura had been referring to Michiko's child. Something was nagging at the back of his mind, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

His onyx eyes spared a glance at Sakura's tent one last time before he retreated back to his own. _'Tomorrow_,' he decided. That's when he would get his answers.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura sat in her tent, to restless to allow sleep to consume her. She dangled her locket from her fingers and watched the small amount of light from the lantern reflect of it's surface. She felt the ridges on he front, the familiar engravings tugged on her skin. Her thumb slipped across the backside of the silver locket.

Sakura stopped, then repeated the motion. There were ridges on the back as well. She didn't bother to wonder why she hadn't noticed before, her mind was already racing with another thought. '_I've felt these ridges before, or something like them.' _

Unconsciously, Sakura dug her hand into her Kunai pack, searching for something. She wasn't sure what. That was, until she found it. She brought the small item up to eye level.

Sakura stared down the flat, oval shaped piece of white gold. He emerald eyes almost danced with excitement. The woman from her vision had given her the piece, meaning this was important. Sakura was sure of it. Sakura brought the gold plate down onto the silver locket. She heard a click as the two pieces connected.

Almost instantly the necklace popped open. Sakura's heart began to beat wildly. She slowly turned the locket around and looked inside. One side had a picture of a woman with gorgeous blond hair and bright green eye, the girl from her dreams. Next to her stood a man with dark red hair and black eyes. The two were smiling happily.

Adjacent to the tiny picture was an engraving. It read, "_Thank you Michiko for giving me our beautiful Daughter. I know we will have a happy life together." _Sakura dropped the locket in shock. She had been dreaming about Michiko? Why? That man was Michiko's lover then. Did he know his beloved died after giving birth? Did he hate his daughter for taking her life?

A soft melody began to play from Sakura's locket almost as soon as it hit the ground, as though the impact caused it to go off. Sakura stood there listing to the ire song. She knew it. It was the one that had invoked her first dream. When she thought of it, it also caused her second dream as well.

That was the last thought Sakura had before she felt another dream start.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: Well, that's another chapter done. I forgot to mention last chapter, Tengoku (if memory serves me right) is the Japanese word for heaven. I thought it would be an ironic name for the village, since those with wings come from there, but the people slaughtered them. it's a mind bender, lol.

Anyway, as you all have noticed, I am answering the questions, however, I'm also making more! Bwahahaha. For example; Jaaku was human at one point (as Kakashi mentioned), but how did he become a demon? Also, were did he come from and why did Kaori want to save him? So even though parts of the story are revealed, I'm not giving everything away.

T-T-That's all folks!


	10. Part X: Senichi

A/N: Woo Hoo! Hey everybody, I'm writing this chapter at 2:02 am after not sleeping the night prior. Also I'm exhausted from being squished by a mattress and chased by a sofa with no cushions. If you think I'm kidding, you've obviously never moved these items out of a three story apartment building with no elevator! So here I am writing this chapter after all that, and that everyone is called dedication.

(Shakes fist) you all better appreciate this!…I'm a wee bit over tired, excuse the craziness.

**Quasi101**: I'm glad you reviewed! Thank you for taking the time to comment. I'm happy that my story was good enough to lure you out of lurking, lol. I hope you continue to enjoy my story!

**Rel **: I'm glad you like the fic! Thank you for the review!

**Krista**: I know I'm cutting it close but I hope I made it in time, I don't want to loose one of my readers! Why wont you be able to read my story anymore? I'm so sad now.

**AnimeManiac09 **: I hope the anticipation doesn't kill you! Then you wouldn't be able to find out what happens. Thank you for the review!

**Only Secret **: Haha, and this chapter will be like flour to the gravy…if the plot was gravy…flour makes gravy thick…you get it right? I'm over tired, can you tell? Lol. You will see more connections as the story progresses! Thanks for the review as always.

**Xelagirl2**: I wont answer your questions, but this chapter will, well one of your questions. I'm glad you are enjoying the story so much, it makes me happy to know that. Huggle. Thank you again for your review!

**Shinobi Darkbeak**: Thank you for the review. I'm glad you like my chapters, I will continue to update and hope that my work stays good!

**Ruriko89**: I liked that last chapter the best too, cause it finally explained a few things, lol. Ass for Sakura's destiny, Jaaku plans to use her blood to wipe out mankind, I haven't explained how though, all that I leaked out is that Sakura needs her wings to appear before he can do that. Also, I've been hinting at an alternative. But you'll have to keep reading to find out what that is.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The dream started out like the others, in an open field with a lake and forest. Sakura was now used to watching everything through Michiko's eyes. Her father was there again. Sakura could feel her host's happiness bubble inside herself. However, as Sakura knew, this would not last.

Like before, Jaaku arrived. The actions were quick, as though they fast forwarding through the dream. '_It's not really a dream,_' Sakura thought as she watched Jaaku kill Michiko's father. '_These must be memories,_' she decided. The white light appeared around Michiko like before. Sakura then saw white feathers float in front of her face.

"_Her blood is that of those with wings…Lets see if I can't coax those wings of yours out"_

Sakura felt a tremor dance down her back. The white light dimmed and Sakura felt the same searing pain on her shoulder blades from her last encounter with the demon.

The dream Jaaku was smiling now. Michiko's head turned to the right allowing her and Sakura to see the large feathery white wing that protruded from her back. To the left was another. Had Sakura not already have been unconscious, she was sure this would have made her faint.

Jaaku reached out for the small girl who was no shaking in fear. Sakura tried to urge her host to run but it was a fruitless effort as Sakura reminded herself that these events had already taken place, she was just watching them.

"Senichi? Is that you? Have you returned to Tengoku?" Michiko and Sakura looked down at the young blonde's father who was just barely holding on to life. "It is you Senichi, you finally came back," a somewhat sad smile crossed the man's lips and he closed his eyes. "You have changed, Senichi. Was it worth it?" Jaaku snarled angrily at the dieing man.

"Senichi? That fool of a mortal? I shed that identity a hundred years before you were even born," Jaaku spit. "Don't act familiar with me." Jaaku stepped over to Michiko's father who was lying on his stomach. Blood was pooling below him over the green grass. Michiko was too scared to move, she was too young to witness such heinous acts of cruelty. "Ah, I see now. You are of the Hashinaka clan. Minako, that horrible woman, must have been one of your ancestors," Jaaku seemed intrigued now.

"How could you leave her like that? She loved you!" Michiko's father asked. His voice was fading and he knew he would be dead soon. "It broke her heart and killed her when you left."

Jaaku laughed. "Good, Minako was always in my way," he said. "Besides, she loved Senichi, not me. You see, I have found what I was looking for," he added waving his hands around as if to show himself off . "Immortality, and only at the coast of my humanity. It was quite a deal really."

Michiko's father was growing angry now. "She wanted to protect you from that," he wheezed. "But since she is not here, I will grant her last wish," her shouted. His hands moved fast creating seals. Jaaku realized what the man was doing, but it was to late. The deed had been done.

Jaaku screamed in anger and pain as Michiko's father grabbed his ankle. I bright green light flashed around the man's grip and slowly died down. "Bastard! Hw could you!" Jaaku screamed. He yanked his leg away in sheer rage. "Curse you! Don't you dare think this is over," Jaaku shouted as he scrambled away from the man who was only half alive. "I'll get rid of this curse, then she will die!" Jaaku then disappeared back into the forest.

Michiko stood frozen for a moment, then cried. Sakura whished that the bubbly feeling would come back, anything would have felt better then this child's remorse. The small body crawled over to her father and timid hands rolled him onto his back. "Otousan?"

A weak smile. "Michiko-Chan, I need you to find Ojisan and tell him what happened. He will know what to do. don't worry about Senichi, he cannot harm you for now," Michiko's father stopped to cough. Blood speckled his lips. "I have cursed him with humanity, however he may find a way to break the curse, you must be prepared," Michiko just nodded her head as her father spoke. Her heart was beating fast now and she fought to keep the tears out of her eyes.

"It's okay to cry, Michiko-Chan," her father reassured. The small girl wrapped her tiny arms around the man and sobbed into his chest. The man's body became cold and Sakura felt a chill run down her spine. She looked up at the sky. the blue cloud covered sky began to ripple like water.

Sakura's lungs bean to burn as she soon realized the scenery had changed. she was now below the water of what seemed like a bathtub. Two hands were pining her shoulders down. Above her, Sakura made out the image of a crying woman. Red swirls twisted around in the water and above her face.

Sakura tried to scream but instead she let out a bubbly gasp as the air escaped her mouth. He vision was going black when she was finally released.

"Shouta! Shouta, what have I done?" the woman cried.

Before Michiko's body broke the watery surface, Sakura felt herself being pulled from the dream.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Sakura?"

The pink haired konouchi woke up to find a pair of cold black eyes staring down at her. "Was it another dream?" Sasuke asked. He watched his female teammate struggle slightly to sit up and offered her help as he placed his hand against the small of her back. Sakura nodded gratefully at him.

"Yeah, but this one was much longer then the other one," she explained. "I think they are memories. Michiko's memories. Of when her father was killed." Sakura's shoulders slumped at that thought. The name Shouta stuck out in her mind. "Shouta, I think that was her father's name."

Sasuke was considering Sakura's theory on her reams when she said that last part. "Shouta? Why that name?" He questioned.

"At the end of my dream, a woman was calling out to someone named Shouta, and I think that happened after he died. Who ever the women was, she must have known him since she had his daughter." Sakura pondered further, surprised by her minds capability to work so quickly after just waking up. However, she reasoned with herself that the images were fresh in her mind and she didn't want to forget anything.

"Why did the woman have Michiko?" Sasuke asked. "Unless she was the her mother. Why else would she have Shouta's child?" Sakura shook her head.

"No way. The woman was trying to drown Michiko, the is no way that was her mother," Sakura said. She vaugly wondered were the blood had come from. Sasuke pulled her mind away from the question before she could analyze it.

"Something must be triggering your dreams," he said. He looked at Sakura expectantly. She just shrugged in return. No way in hell was she going to tell him that her dreams were brought on by some ire lullaby that she'd been humming to herself for the past few days. That would lead to her telling him about the locket and as far as she knew, he didn't want her to have it.

"Whatever it is, I bless it. I found something interesting out about our friend Jaaku," Sakura said eagerly. Sasuke listened intently as she explained her dream to him in perfect detail, everything from Jaaku's dead lover Minako all the way to the crying woman. She was careful not to forget to mention Senichi. She also shared her speculation that Jaaku was once human and that he was called Senichi.

"Hn," Sasuke said when Sakura finished telling him everything. "Sounds like Minako was trying to stop him from doing something stupid," Sasuke said with a smirk. "The two of you seem to share that trait," he said with a smirk as he remembered a certain night with the pink haired girl just before he left Konoha.

Sakura blushed slightly and looked away, determined not to be distracted. "Kaori-san said that Jaaku still had humanity in him, even though she killed him. He must have thought that would break the curse Shouta put on him, but I guess it wasn't completed."

Sasuke agreed with a nod of his head. The two then sat in thought.

They sat there for a half hour in silence, thinking over the facts that they had gathered between them. Sakura was beginning to feel drowsy after a restless sleep then deep thinking. Her eyelids felt heavy and her neck soon could not hold up her head. Before she knew it, her body shut down and Sakura fell asleep, her head of pink locks resting gently on Sasuke's shoulder.

The Uchiha looked down at the pink konouchi and smirked. The girl had been pushing herself so much, he was relived she would have a peaceful sleep. Hopefully her mind would not be plagued by more dreams to analyze the next day. She needed a break.

Besides all that, Sasuke had a bad feeling about her dreams. He recognized their usefulness, but somehow he thought they would show her something that would hurt her. Something he was sure of.

Michiko's child. The thought floated around in the Uchiha's mind for a while as he laid the sleeping girl onto her knapsack and exited her tent.

"Sasuke?"

Sasuke looked to were his name had come from and found his sensei sitting by the previously exited tent's opening. Sasuke frowned. "What?" he responded. Kakashi didn't seem to have his carefree attitude for the second time that night. Kakashi stood up and moved away from Sakura's tent to his own.

"Be careful of her dreams, Sasuke," Kakashi warned. "They'll be more harmful the helpful in the long run. The less she knows, the better," Kakashi said in his ever so mysterious way. The silver haired man disappeared into his tent.

Sasuke stood there with his fists clenched as his teeth grit against each other. He was not thrilled with Kakashi so blatantly eavesdropping on his and Sakura's conversations. It also seemed to bother him that Kakashi was voicing Sasuke's own apprehensions. Something about Kakashi's warning made Sasuke want to shake Sakura awake and command that she have another dream just to spite the old man.

Sasuke place his hand against his shoulder were Sakura had fallen asleep. He smirked. He wasn;t sure why he smirked, but he didn't mind either. He had a sense of self satisfaction from the small tingle of warmth that came from his shoulder.

Sasuke returned to his tent for the night and settled into sleep.

Kakashi, however would not be sleeping tonight. He was kept awake by the conversation he previously had with Kaori, and the thoughts of his audience. Though he wasn't positive, something told him Sasuke and Sakura now had more information on the situation then he would have liked. It wasn't that he wanted to lie to them necessarily, he just felt that it would be easier for Sakura if she didn't know much of what was going on.

He hoped Sasuke would take his warning seriously, thought the brooding boy had been acting strangely as of late. For some reason or another, Sasuke seemed to have some hostile feelings toward his sensei.

Kakashi sighed. This was going to be a long affair.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: Ok, it is now 4:04 am and I have finished this chapter. I wrote for two hours and two minutes straight. I know the chapter is short, but I'm sleep depraved so deal with it. Ok, I used some nifty words in this chapter that I don't know if everyone is familiar with.

Otousan: means father.

Ojisan: means uncle. (I'm fairly certain it does anyway, if anyone finds out I'm wrong, please tell me! Thanks)

T-T-that's all folks!


	11. Part XI: Daughter

A/N: SORRY! I know this chapter is way late. I've been having a lot of trouble between school starting, work, and fights with my guardian. Its been hell for me really. I appreciate all who have been patient with me. Sorry if I made some of you question whether I would finish this or not. I would like to assure you all that this story will be completed (just not right now, we still have some things to get through).

I would also like to mention that my chapters may be less frequent because I just joined club H.O.P.E. at my school and we have a lot of meetings. For anyone who cares, club H.O.P.E. is basically students doing charity. Last year the club collected over eleven thousand dollars for Tsunami relief. Right now we are starting to raise money for New Orleans to help out with the Hurricane damages. Here hoping things will be resolved a.s.a.p.

Little Minamino: I'm glad you like. Thank you for the review.

Sakura-Girl 2005: Wow, that's really nice of you to say. I think that's the first time I've been ranked and I'm stoked to know that I'm so high up! Sorry the update is late. Thank you for the review.

Xelagirl2: You ask for more review and I say I can't, I'm sorry. I will try to update as often as I can, but I've got a lot on my plate. But I will be updating so keep an eye out for the latest chapters.

Krista: no insults? I feel strangely empty. I think you liked the chapter, but all you said was update, so that's just my guess. Thank you for the review.

AnimeManiac09: Um…I'm not sure how to respond to that. I get that you liked the chapter, but I'm not too sure about all that death stuff, will my update kill you or save you?…thanks for the review.

Shinobi-Sakura: I hope this comes out right, I'm glad I proved you wrong, about this not making sense that is. I have put a lot of thought into the chapters and I'm trying very hard to make sure everything connects. I'm glad to here that you gave me a chance and liked my story. Your compliments are really sweet, thank you. As for the Sasu/Saku moments, trust they will get more love in about two chapters. Hope you will hold out!

Shinobi Darkbeak: Thank you for your review, I hope I can keep your interests.

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Naruto, I only wish I was.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Naruto shifted his eyes around the camp fire examining his team plus one. The extra being Kaori. Why she was there, Kakashi didn't explain, But considering she had helped them out before, he wasn't going to complain. Besides, the blond boy had more important things to figure out. Like why he seemed to be left out of the loop. Their was a staring contest going on that didn't involve him.

Sakura was watching Sasuke, who was glaring at Kakashi, who was studying Kaori, who was eyeing Sakura. It was odd, to say the least. But what really bothered Naruto was that he had no idea why. He had no clue what was going on. Sure, he understood that their was a bunch of demons out to kill Sakura, but what escaped him was why. So Naruto sat there, uncharacteristically quite, trying to make sense of all this.

What also seemed to perplex the fox boy was Sasuke's sudden interest in Sakura. Naruto knew his brooding friend to be three things; the last surviving Uchiha, a genius, and a cold-hearted bastard. Not a concerned friend. Naruto was a bit freaked honestly.

The silence that shrouded the camp was irritating. Naruto Fidgeted under the quite stares, which were not pointed at him his mind continued to remind. The blue eyes looked around one last time. He couldn't take it anymore. "What the hell is going on!" he shouted. His interruption snapped everyone from their stares. Four pairs of eyes focused on the boy and Naruto began to feel uneasy. "Um, if you wouldn't mind telling me, that is," a nervous chuckle.

Kaori, Kakashi, Sakura, and Sasuke gave Naruto a questioning stare. "Were have you been?" Sasuke asked smugly. Naruto just growled.

"Naruto, you have no idea what's going on?" Sakura asked. She felt stupid as soon as she said it. Of course he didn't know anything, nobody was filling him in on what was happening. Sakura had been to involved in her dreams and Sasuke, Sasuke never talked about anything, Kakashi always kept to himself anyways, and no one knew Kaori well enough to ask her anything. In fact, She only seemed to talk to Kakashi.

"Kaori, don't you think they have a right to know?" Kakashi questioned. Kaori's eyes shot to the silver haired man in utter shock. His visible eye crinkled as he smiled at the brunette, while she just sat their seething at the man. He knew full well that saying to much would be troublesome.

"Yes Kaori-san," Sakura said, "I have a few questions I need answers to." Kaori nodded in response, but not before shooting Kakashi an "I-hope-you-know-what-you've-done" look. "First off, who is Michiko?" Sakura asked.

"Michiko? Who the hell is that?" Naruto asked. Sakura beat him across the head.

"Why do you think I'm asking?" she screamed in outrage. "If I knew who she was then I wouldn't be asking!" Sakura sat back down next to Sasuke and heaved a sigh.

Kaori looked between the three. "Are you sure they're a team?" she asked Kakashi secretly. She turned back to the three and was met with intense stares. "Um, yeah…" she stumbled over her words and finally managed a sentence. "Michiko was born with wings, like Sakura…"

"Sakura has wings!"

"Shut up Naruto."

"What did you say Sasuke?"

"Both of you cut it out!"

"Sorry Sakura-Chan."

"Hn."

Kaori unconsciously pulled back from the group. Sure she had seen them interact before, but it was different up close then from a tree. "Right, um. As I said, Michiko had wings and was one of Jaaku's targets. When he killed her father, that's when Michiko's wings appeared." Kaori stopped to look around the group. Sasuke's face was unreadable and Sakura looked as though this was nothing new. Naruto however looked completely lost.

"I don't get it," the fox boy complained. "Why is Jaaku after Sakura-Chan and Michiko?" he asked scratching his head. Kaori sighed. Man this guy was clueless. She couldn't understand how he had missed all of this.

"Sakura and Michiko have the blood of those with wings, but Michiko died…"

"What does that mean?"

"Shut up!"

"Knock it off and let Kaori-San explain already!" Sakura punched Naruto in the head and glared at Sasuke. She may love the man but now was not the time. "Kaori-San is trying to explain all of this and if you keep interrupting her we will never know what's going on," she said.

"Thank you Sakura-sama…err, Chan." Kaori mentally kicked herself. That didn't need to be said. "Anyway, Jaaku needs the blood of those with wings to, well. How should I put this?" the brunette tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Well, he will try to use Sakura's blood to wipe out humanity," she said.

Naruto's eyes went wide. "What?"

"What about the others? I heard you and Kakashi-sensei talking last night. There were others besides Michiko and Sakura," Sasuke said. His hands were folded in front of his face. He was in thinking mode.

"Wait, get back to the humanity thing," Naruto complained. He was so beyond lost.

"If you pay attention, maybe you can put the pieces together," Kakashi suggested. "Kaori, please explain the others."

"The others, they were killed." Kaori ran a hand through her hair. "They were feared by the community because of their power. The only reason Michiko was spared is because the villagers wanted to fight back," Kaori stopped. Sakura noticed her jaw tremble and her body shake. "However, they didn't trust her completely. She was viewed as a tool of evil, something that was inhuman. They wanted her to breed," tears were forming now. "They wanted her to pass the power onto a human child, one that they could control, but she died giving birth to her daughter. That same night Jaaku and his demons attacked," Kaori buried her face into her hands.

Sakura felt herself wanting to cry as well. So much death surrounded these beings. Even if they had such terrifying power, was that really a reason to take their life? She was one of them. She could have been killed at birth. Although something seemed off. "Why haven't my wings appeared? Michiko's sis when she was really young, and I just barely found out about my power," she asked.

Kaori looked nervously to Kakashi. Sakura noticed. There was something they weren't telling her, and Sakura was pissed. "Don't play this game with me!" she shouted. Since this whole thing started, Sakura had found her patients running thin. "If you know something about me I have the right to know! And you," she yelled pointing at Kakashi, "You knew all along, didn't you?" Tears were falling from her eyes and her knees buckled below her. Too much was going on inside her head, it was wearing her down.

Sasuke grabbed Sakura under her arms as she slumped down and placed her on the ground gently. He gently rubbed circles against her back, calming her down, all the while shooting Kakashi death glares. He would never admit it out loud, or maybe even in his own head, but the fact that Sakura was this upset was really bothering him, and the Uchiha knew just who to blame. "I think you should tell us what we need to know, everything," Sasuke said. Although it was a suggestion, his voice left no room for refusal.

"Sasuke, I don't think you know what you are getting into," Kaori pleaded desperately. She didn't want to hurt Sakura anymore but it seemed the problem was not going to go away. The unwavering glare Sasuke was giving her made that painfully obvious. "The reason Sakura's wings haven't appeared is because she is a half breed, part human." Kaori looked down, tightening her fists that were clenched into the dark fabric of her skirt.

Sasuke understood immediately. He couldn't believe the fact had evaded him for so long. Of course, that would explain Sakura's connection to Michiko and why she was having dreams about her. It explained so much. The glue that pieced everything together. Michiko's green eyes should have given it away. What he didn't understand was why Kaori had held this information from them.

One look at Sakura, and he understood.

She knew what Kaori had said and everything that went along with it. Her worst fears were coming true. She was not Haruno Sakura. "…_you are a konouchi of Konoha. Nothing that you have heard in the past few hours changes that._" Sasuke's words flooded her head. Lies, everything was lies. He lied to her.

Sasuke noticed his teammate's distraught composure. She was staring at him in an almost accusing way.

"What do you mean Sakura-Chan is a half breed? Was one of her parents a, um, winged person?" Naruto asked dumbly unsure what was going on and completely oblivious to Sakura and Sasuke. Kaori shakily nodded in response. "Then why didn't Jaaku attack them?" Kaori looked down in defeat.

"He did," Kaori said. She noted the crack in her voice.

"But the Harunos are fine."

"The Harunos were never attacked."

"But you just said…"

"Don't you get it!" Sakura screamed. "Those people aren't my parents. I'm not even from Konoha," Naruto looked taken aback by Sakura's outburst. "My whole life has been a lie!" Sakura stood and ran, she ran as fast and hard as she could, disappearing into the woods. Sasuke ran after her.

"Sakura…Chan?" Naruto watched the two as they ran away from the group. He turned his attention back to Kaori. "What does she mean?"

"Sakura-Sama, my charge, is from the Village of Tengoku. She was the last hope for the people to live in peace. Hashinaka Sakura is Michiko's daughter." Kaori didn't remove her eyes from the powdery dirt through her explanation. When she did look up, Naruto was staring wide eyed at her, finally understanding the meaning of her words and everything going on.

"So Sakura-Chan is from Tengoku?" Naruto thought about this. "She was brought to Konoha the day she was born, by why?" It was the one question no one else had thought to ask.

"From the moment Michiko was given an opportunity to live, my sister, Otone, and I were given the duty to protect our niece, Sakura. However, when the demons attacked our people knew what only the two of use were not enough, so she was sent to Konoha. They had powerful forces and would be able to train Sakura to look after herself."

"Why couldn't their shinobi look after her?" Naruto asked. Now that he understood what was going on, he wanted to know everything.

"There are no shinobi in Tengoku. My sister and I were the only ones. We were trained by our father specifically to fend off Jaaku. But we were only two people," Kaori explained.

The three sat in silence now. Naruto adjusted to the idea of Sakura not being a real native of Konoha. He thought about all the times they trained together, how she used to scold him for talking badly about Sasuke, the time when she finally excepted his date. They had so many memories, but she wasn't who any of them thought she was.

Naruto shook his head. "I don't care!" he shouted. He stood up with his hands bawled into fists at his side. "She is still Sakura-Chan, this doesn't change anything!"

Kakashi sighed and cast his eyes downward. '_If only Sakura heard that,'_ he thought.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura ran rabidly through the think growth if trees, stumbling over the upturned roots and being attacked by the branches. Fresh tears slipped down her face as she tried to block out everything. Why did she have to ask, why did she have to know?

Her feet pounded against the ground, slipping over the rocks. Her body gave out below her and she fell face first into the ground. She didn't move, just lay there. Her tears stopped but her breathing was erratic. She wrapped her arms around herself, afraid from the cold chill. The iris of her eye invaded her pupil and turned the black dot the same shade green.

"Lies, liar, lie, lying, fake, faker, faking, fake."

Her voice was monotone. Her body was rocking. Everything was wrong. She was a monster, she didn't care what Sasuke said anymore. She just wanted to die.

With her knees curled up to her chest in fetal position, Sakura continued her chant. That was how Sasuke found her.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: I don't really like this chapter that much, but I wanted to introduce that part of Sakura's past. I know everyone probably already figured out that Sakura was Michiko's kid, but it had to be said in the story for continuity sake. There are some secrets about Michiko's past that need some revealing plus there is Jaaku and Minako's story. I hope everyone caught the little hint I gave in the last chapter when Sasuke compared Sakura to Minako.

Sorry this chapter took so long, like I said before I've been going through hell for a while. I hope this chapter was worth the wait.

Later days.


	12. PartXII:runaway

A/N: Howdy! Wow, so I just bought this kick ass lap desk thingy and it has a cup holder. I'm so stoked now! I do all my writing at night when I'm in bed so this thing is just perfect, and the fact that it holds my Welch's strawberry-Kiwi drink sweetens the deal. I'm way too excited about my newest purchase, but as some of you may have noticed, I'm non to normal.

**Joy-girl: **I'm glad you are enjoying my story. I know it's a bit predictable, but I was hope the story isn't too badly affected by it. I don't mind suggestions, they give me inspiration! Thank you for your review.

**Krista:** I sit when I write, so if I get off my lazy butt, well there in lies a conflict, lol. Anyways, this chapter is also lacking in action again, I'm sorry, but I promise action in the next chapter, scouts honor…yes I was a scout!

**Sakura-Girl 2005 **: Glad you like the story, sorry about my bad grammar, but that's what happens when you don't pay attention in English. I do try and keep an eye out for it though. I like the pat about Naruto's thoughts too! Lol. I hope you continue to read! Thanks for the review!

**flowerangel050**: rejoice, for I have updated! Wow, I'm getting full of myself, lol. Thank you for the review!

**Hao'sAnjul**: Yep, last chapter was the information chapter. Now that everything is all cleared up I we can get back to the story at hand. I'm glad you liked it. Thank you for your review.

**Crasiness **: it wasn't really soon, but I made more, lol. I'm glad you like this. Thanks for the review!

**Shinobi Darkbeak**: Thanks for the review. I'm always happy to hear that my chapters are enjoyed!

**blooming flower08**: I'm happy to hear that you are interested in the story. I hope that you enjoy what is to come!

**Xelagirl2**: As always you shower me with praise that I do so appreciate. I will try to update quickly but I'm happy to hear that you will be patient with me, and don't worry, I understood what you were trying to say…I think, lol. Thank you for the review and also the luck!

Disclaimer: I have a T-shirt that says "I need a hug". I wear that when I remember that I DON'T OWN NARUTO!

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Damn it!" Kaori screamed. She pulled on the brunette strands of hair that were wrapped in her fingers. "This is exactly why I didn't want to tell her anything." The frustrated konouchi paced around the campsite oblivious to the odd stares Naruto was giving her. "Ahrg, I knew she would freak out! I blame you," she shouted pointing an accusing finger at the lanky man beside her.

Kakashi raised his head from the orange book that seemed to appear out of nowhere. He gave a nod of acknowledgement and buried his nose back into Itcha Itcha Paradise. The calm behavior Kakashi was exhibiting did nothing to relax his angry comrade. In fact, his gestures served to cause further irritation.

"How can you be so calm?" Kaori cried in utter outrage. Even showing the slightest hint of concern might have slowed her avalanche of nerves. "Two of your own students have been missing for who knows how long. Ones an emotional wreck and the other ones a homicidal freak, and you wont let me look for either of them."

Naruto was also questioning his sensei's decision to let Sakura and Sasuke run around the woods, especially right now. However the blond boy opted to stay uncharacteristically silent on the matter. For once in his life, Naruto kept his mouth shut because he didn't understand what was happening. All he really cared about was his two friends and their well being.

After finding out about her linage, Sakura had dashed off to be alone with tears ready to fall. However, Sasuke wasn't about to grant her that freedom. Naruto found himself more baffled by the Uchiha's sudden shows of emotion then Sakura's mysterious power and origin.

"Kakashi-san, are you even listing to me?" Kaori demanded. Her foot tapped impatiently on the ground. Apparently all the excitement was making Kaori fidgety. If she wasn't pacing, she would tap her foot or finger a kunai, even pull her hair.

"Ai, Don't worry. Sasuke will talk her down," Kakashi assured, his face still hidden by the creased orange cover of his favorite perverted book. The mirth in his voice did not escape Kaori.

"You think that emotionally constipated mess of a boy is going to be able to comfort Sakura? Please, he can barely control himself," Kaori argued. "I wouldn't be so trusting of that brat. He's more likely to cause more harm then…"

"I trust Sasuke." Kaori bit back the argument she had in mind after Kakashi interrupted her. It was the first serious thing he had said since two thirds of his team disappeared. "If there is anyone in our team that can reach Sakura, even now, I believe it would be him." Kakashi looked up from the page he was currently reading. He snapped the cover closed and pocketed the little book. "It would be a shame if we were to walk in on that," he added, a hidden smile already morphed onto his face.

"Eh, Kakashi-sensei, there is one thing I don't understand," Naruto said, speaking up finally. The blonde scratched the back of his head thoughtfully as he decided the best way to execute his question. "If Jaaku wants to be a full demon, does that mean he is part human?"

Kakashi thought about this for a moment then turned to Kaori, who was now distracting herself by cleaning her Katana. "Ask her," he finally replied.

Kaori's eyes snapped up as she realized the attention was on her now. She looked from Kakashi to his student, then back to Kakashi. Her eyes narrowed in contempt as she stared at the silver haired jounin. Her violet eyes settled on Naruto once more. "Jaaku was once a man named Senichi, who was also from Tengoku. The people of the village used to say that he was a child born with a lust to live. He was so amazed at the capabilities life had to offer." Kaori watched as Naruto became enthralled in her explanation. His eyes were focused on hers. "His love of living," she continued, "became an obsession. He wanted to find a way to prevent death. One day he went in search of the fabled Fountain of Youth."

"What is that?" Naruto asked curiously.

Surprise crept into Kaori's features. It was odd that someone would not know a story as famous as that. Although, this boy was from another village, with possibly different myths. "The story about the Fountain of Youth is that anyone who could find it and drink from its water would never age, nor die," she explained.

"Wow, is it real?" Naruto asked nearly jumping from his seat in excitement.

"No," Kaori told the now disappointed fox boy. "But Senichi thought it was. He left the village in search of it. For almost three years he traveled, searching for the fountain. He left Minako, his love, broken hearted. She later died of what people say was a tremendous heart break. Minako was Sakura's great great great grandmother."

Naruto noted the resemblance Sakura held with Minako personality wise. Sakura had been crestfallen when Sasuke left, even tried to go after him herself, and never once giving up on him. Naruto was relieved as well, with the substantial likeness Sakura had to Minako's behaviors. If Sasuke hadn't returned when he did, Sakura may have shared the same fate. Through the years that Sasuke was gone, the pink haired konouchi had become more and more withdrawn.

"Anyway, After Minako died, Senichi returned. Her death stirred something inside him. His prior ambition was only a small percentage compared to what he felt now. He became withdrawn, barely leaving his home. He was researching immortality."

"That makes no sense." Naruto scratched his head thoughtfully. "If someone important to me died and I was that messed up, I would be looking for a way to bring them back," he thought out loud.

"You don't need to be messed up to think like that, Naruto-Kun," Kaori said. Her eyes were downcast. "He didn't care about brining Minako back. The sick part was that her death only served as a reminder that he was human. He left three month later," she explained. "When he came back, he was no longer human. No one knows what happened to him."

"A demon?" Naruto was surprised.

"Yes. He was a full fledged demon. When he and a hoard of other demons began to terrorize Tengoku, the first child with wings was born. Jaaku announced that the child had the power to destroy all humans," Kaori said. She shifter her feet uncomfortably. This was the part of the story that made her upset.

"The villagers panicked and did the only thing they could think of. They killed the child. Soon another came and it too was killed. More and more children were slaughtered to avoid the atrocity Jaaku had promised. It wasn't until Michiko's father, Shouta, cursed him with humanity that Jaaku backed off. However, he has found a loop hole around the necessities."

Naruto scrunched his face in confusion. "What does that mean?"

Kaori rolled her eyes. Apparently she would have to spell things out for the blonde boy. "The only way Jaaku can destroy humanity is if he is a full demon."

"Oh…"

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura pressed her knees deeper into her chest as she rocked forward, cradling the pain that started in her head. So many things were clouding her mind, she didn't know what to think. All she knew was lies, her whole life. It was like everything was torn away from her.

'They all lied to you.'

Sakura bit her lip and continued to stare at the ground as it came closer then backed away in time with her body movements. She didn't even question the strange voice that was speaking to her.

'They are afraid of you.'

It sounded like the truth, it spoke what she felt. Her heart wanted to argue, to remind her that they were her friends, but Sakura's mind was overpowering the emotions she wished she could believe. She couldn't convince herself that team seven really cared about her. Her life was a lie, so were her relations.

'There is a way, to make the pain stop.'

The voice was low and familiar. Jaaku.

'_What do you mean?'_ she asked, hoping he could hear her thoughts as well as she heard his.

'If you come to me, I can take your pain away,' Jaaku assured her.

'_Why should I trust you?'_

'I've never lied to you, have I?'

It was true. Jaaku may have been evil, but everything he told her so far was true, which was more then she could say about anyone in Konoha. Even Sasuke had lied to her.

"Sakura?" It was Sasuke. He had fallowed Sakura into the woods but lost sight of her almost instantly. When he caught up to her, Sakura was laying in fetal position while rocking back and forth. What caught him off guard was her eyes. It looked as though her pupil had disappeared into the jaded iris.

"S-Sasuke?" She looked up from the ground and faced her teammate. "Why are you here?" she asked bitterly. Sasuke was taken back by her coldness. A tone usually reserved for his use only. It sounded foreign on her cheerful vocals.

'He lied to you,' Jaaku reminded he.

"Shut up," Sakura commanded. Sasuke arched his brow.

"Sakura, lets go. Stop acting like a child," he said. He stepped toward her.

"What?" Sakura narrowed her eyes on the intruding party. "What did you just say?" she snarled. "I just found out that one, I'm not from Konoha, and two, my people were slaughtered!"

"You don't even know them, and they would have used you. Get over it."

'He's trying to hold you back. You make him nervous.'

"I said shut up!"

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Sasuke asked. He stepped closer but was brought to a sudden halt when he saw Sakura reach for a kunai. She pulled it in front of herself in an offensive position and pointed it toward him. Something he didn't think she was capable of. "What do you think you are doing?"

"Leave me alone. I want to be alone!" Sakura screamed. "I just found out my whole life is a lie, damn it. Let me grieve!"

"What do you know about grief?" Of all the stupid things Sasuke could have said right then, that was the dumbest.

Sakura shook with anger, but her voice remained calm. "Well lets see, the boy I loved knocked me out after I promised him happiness with me then ran away, I fought for three years to bring him back and gave everything I had to a village I didn't even belong to, and now I find out that my people were wiped out by Jaaku, and it was all my fault! But you're right. What do I know about sorrow?"

Sasuke stood staring at Sakura who seemed so far away from him now. Somewhere, deep down and for the first time, he registered the pain her words actually caused her. Sasuke found that he could not find the right words now, and instead chose to change the subject. "How was Tengoku's fate your fault?"

"He was looking for me," she said. Sakura turned away from Sasuke and sprinted as fast as she could away from her teammate. Sasuke who hadn't really paid attention to Sakura's answer could only focus on one thing. '…_the boy I **loved**…'._

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura ran deeper and deeper into the thick woods, not knowing exactly were to go but having the sense of some sort of guidance. Jaaku's voice kept playing in her mind, reminding her of the pain she was feeling and promising to take it away.

Lucid tears spilled from her eyes, already raw from her previous bout of emotional release. Sakura's arms warded off stray branches that dared cross her path as she trudged through the lush forest. The sound of twigs breaking below her black boots crackled in her ears like a sinister laughter.

The thudding of her heart that threatened her rib cage grew louder with every breath and step. Air was not filling her lungs fast enough as she ran and her throat burned from their vain attempt to keep up. Searing pain built up from her sore, hot feet, and slowly grew up the toned muscles of her legs. Sakura knew her body was screaming at her, begging for rest, but her will made her strive forward. She would not rest until she reached Tengoku. She had to go there and see her home.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sasuke returned to the confused and Sakura-less. Kaori screamed in outrage and scolded Kakashi for his negligence. "I wanted to go after Sakura, but what did you say? 'I trust Sasuke'," she mocked. "Well thanks to his excellent display of grotesque compassion, if you can call it that, he sent her running away!"

"I should thank that boy."

Four pairs of eyes darted toward the woods and focused on the form pf Jaaku. "He saved me some time. Now that she's confused _and_ hurt, she'll be that much more compliable," he said with a snicker.

"What are you talking about?" Kakashi asked. His visible eye narrowed menacingly.

"Well, she wants to rid herself of pain, and its you mortals that are causing it. So I explain to her that I can make the pain go away, all she has to do is remove Shouta's curse," Jaaku explained. "Then I wipe you disgusting humans from the planet and go about my merry way."

"Except you leave out that part, and the one were she has to die!" Kaori accused. Naruto and Sasuke spun their heads to face her fast enough to get whiplash.

"What do you mean, she dies? Sakura-Chan will…?" Naruto couldn't even bring himself to say it.

"Yes you fool, your beloved Sakura will be the casualty of war along with all of your filthy carcasses. Of course there is an alternative, but Sakura has no idea. I counted on Kaori being to stubborn to tell her." Jaaku said.

Sasuke was getting pissed off. The way he spoke about using Sakura like a tool was beginning to bother him. "What alternative?" He demanded.

Jaaku smirked. "Its like yin and yang. She has the capability to do equal parts damage as she does good. When I kill her, you will all die, but if instead she gave up her life force willingly, it would have the opposite effect. All of my demons would be purged from this world. But know I have her, and she will never know," he laughed.

"No, what have I done?" Kaori sunk her face into her palms and her shoulders drooped in distress. "Its my fault, I thought I was protecting her," she cried. Jaaku disappeared during the distraction. "She'll die now!" Kaori said, her voice shuddered.

"No, we're going to stop this," Sasuke said. He began to pack up the camp. Naruto fallowed his lead, then Kakashi. Kaori watched them until there was no trace the camp had ever been there. "Are you coming?" Sasuke asked coldly. "We need someone to show us the way."

Kaori bit her lower lip and nodded. She would have to brave just a little longer.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura stood on top of what she thought might have been a door at one time. Around her was smoky gray air that felt like gauze against her skin. The sky was blackened with soot from fires that perpetually burned. She had been looking for hell, and this was it.

She walked forward into the shadowy ruins, looking for her promised relief.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Whoa Nelly this was a hard chapter to write. I know that it's lacking in action but don't worry, the next chapter there will be a fight scene. I hope I can live up to the last one I wrote. As always, please review on your way out!


	13. Part XIII: No

A/N: I'm back! Not that I was really gone, but you get the idea. Sorry this update took so long but I really didn't want to write this chapter. (you'll understand when you get to the end). Well, please read and enjoy!

**Joy-girl**: Thanks for the review! Sorry, but I can't answer your question cause it would spoil the end. I know, Sasuke-Kun can be a jerk, but he'll get his…lol.

**neu chi no nai u**: I'm glad you like the story. I hope you continue to enjoy it, and also thank you for the review!

**yin vs yang**: I'm glad my story is well liked. Thank you for the review!

**Deeh**: Please don't die! I'm sorry the update took so long. Thank you for your review.

**Sagitarious Devil**: I'm happy to hear that Sasuke is in character. I was almost afraid to do a long Sasusaku story because I wasn't sure if I could keep it up for very long wail keeping the relationship growing. Thanks for the tip on my spelling, that's not my strong suit and apparently spell check wasn't doing it's job, lol. Thank you for the review.

**Hao'sAnjul**: I know, its so sad! What's worse is that things wont be getting better just yet. Thank you for your review!

**Krista**: I think I missed y three week deadline, sorry. I wonder just how many times my life has been threatened in someway or another surrounding this fic. It make me so happy, in a weird sort of way, that my story is so well cherished. Thanks for the review!

**only secret**: Thanks for the review. And don't sweat the last chapter, I'm just glad to hear from you again.

**Shinobi Darkbeak**: Thank you for the review. I will continue to do my best!

**Xelagirl2**: Thanks for the review. Hope I didn't keep you in too much suspense. I know it took me forever to update, but it is here, have no fear! And please enjoy.

I'd also like to thank hagane-girl for her honest review. I was sorry she didn't like the story but I am appreciative to her pointing out why. I hope that I can learn to be a better writer with the constructive criticism I receive here so urge people to be honest when they review. As long as the review is respectful I will try and learn from it.

Disclaimer: I'm not saying it.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura felt bile thickly coat her throat. It caused a scratching pain and begged to be released. She swallowed hard, forcing the hot substance back down, but only temporarily.

The rubble of broken homes and disheveled streets lined the path in which Sakura hoped to travel. The odd familiarity of this town just served as a reminder that this was indeed were she came from. It was strange, she thought, to recognize a place she had only been once. Honestly, Sakura wasn't sure how long she had been there before Jaaku attacked. Kaori had only said the village was destroyed after her birth.

The road was narrow and winding with obstacles that further delayed Sakura's journey. She cursed slightly when the heel of her boot became caught on particularly nasty vine that looked dead and withered. Her body fell forward causing her knees to connect with the sharp pebbles that littered the ground. Red bruises appeared instantly along with a stinging sensation.

"There is no need to bow, Sakura."

The konouchi looked up and found herself face to face with her enemy turned savior. Jaaku toward above her with his ever present superior smirk. Had it been slightly colder, it would rival Sasuke's. Sakura narrowed her eyes. She was still unsure of her new "buddy". The only thing keeping her from attacking was his words of hope.

"I'm not bowing," she bit. His smirk became a broad smile.

"Why all the hostility? You came to me for help, I didn't force you here." Sakura hated how easy it was for him to speak with such kindness to someone he wanted to kill.

'_What changed his mind, or did he?'_

"Why do you want to help me? What's in it for you?" She asked skeptically.

"You still don't trust me?" Jaaku feigned hurt. "I suppose I should have expected that. How many of your family's death were caused by me? Minako, Shouta, Otone. I even tried to kill Michiko, but she died before I could get to her."

"You didn't answer my question."

Sakura stood with her shoulders pushed back and her fists clenched. The polish of her pink nails chipped off against her sweating skin. She was more then nervous, she was terrified. Jaaku was more then capable of killing her now, and no reinforcements would be showing up this time. Even if Sasuke and the others came after her, they would never find Tengoku in time.

"All I want in return for ending your sorrow, is for you to remove your grandfather's curse. With it in place, I cannot help you," Jaaku explained.

"I should have known! You just want to become a full demon, you can't help me!" Sakura turned to run from the village but Jaaku grabbed her wrist. She spun around landed her heel into his stomach. "Let go!"

"I told you I could make your pain go away," He sneered, holding his gut with his other hand. "The price isn't that steep. You should feel lucky that's all I'm asking."

"Yeah right, the instant that curse is gone, you'll kill me." Sakura ripped her arm from Jaaku's grasp. His arm shot out and wrapped around her neck. "Stop it!"

"I'm offering you a chance to change your future and you want to walk away from all that?" Sakura stopped struggling.

"What do you mean, "change my future"?" She asked skeptically.

Jaaku released his grip and Sakura fell to the ground. Her neck was red and sore. "If you help me, I can remove your wings."

Sakura sat against the dirt with her head down. The pink wisps of hair that framed her face now covered her eyes as crystal tears slipped down her face. "What do I have to do?"

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"We should take a break Sasuke-teme!"

The self appointed leader ignored Naruto's whinny request and continued on. Kaori was only a few paces ahead of him. Since she was the only on who knew were Tengoku was, Sasuke had reluctantly allowed her to take the lead. They had decided to check out the village first since, according to the expert, that's were the demons were.

"Are you listening to me?" Naruto cried angrily from behind. Clearly Sasuke was not paying attention to the blonde boy as he leapt from branch to branch. Naruto pursed his lips and furrowed his blonde brow in aggravation. "What's his problem?"

Kakashi had a pretty good idea what was going through the Uchiha's mind, but he chose to keep his thoughts to himself. "Don't worry about it Naruto," he said. Naruto sighed. His bright blue eyes shifted to Kaori. She had tied her long brown hair up into a high ponytail. She was preparing for battle, that was for sure. The katana was strapped to her waist as always, however another was on her back. It was Otone's. Kaori's lips were sealed in a grimace that dawned her features during fights.

"Have you noticed something, off, about Kaori?" Naruto asked his sensei. "She seems different today, like when we first met her." Naruto examined the young woman in question.

"What do you mean?" Kakashi asked, knowing full well what the boy was hinting at.

"I can't really explain it, but it's almost like she's two different people," he explained scratching the back of his neck. He looked to Kakashi for conformation.

"Losing her sister was very hard on her. Otone was the stronger fighter between the two and Kaori thought that she should have died instead." Kakashi allowed his eye to wonder to Naruto. The fox boy was confused.

"What does that have to do with Kaori's multiple personalities?" he inquired.

Kakashi never had a chance to answer. Teacher and student were brought to an abrupt stop by Sasuke and Kaori. "we're here," Kaori said. The group of four stood at the edge of the woods, before them was a lake with a bridge connecting to what looked like hell. "This was Tengoku."

A bright light caught Sasuke's dark eyes. "Let's go," he ordered.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Focus," Jaaku said softly, agonizingly. The light that wrapped around his ankle were the curse mark was burned into his skin. Sakura's arms shook as she tried to control the mass amount of energy that came from her. Jaaku had taught her how to tap into some of her "wing's chakara" what ever that meant.

"How long do I have to do this?" Sakura asked impatiently. She felt herself getting weak, and the need for a rest was growing stronger. Her ability to control the chakara was beginning to evaporate. "I don't think I can do keep this up," she said.

"Just concentrate!" Jaaku snapped. He felt the curse begin to lift and a feeling of anxiousness began to overwhelm him.

Beads of sweat formed against Sakura's pale skin and fell down her face in streams. Her brow was knit together in deep concentration. Her whole body was shaking now. Breaths were coming out harder and faster. Her heart beat was speeding up. "How much longer?" she persisted.

"Shut up!" Jaaku shouted. He could feel it now. They were almost there. Just a second longer.

A bright light enveloped the village as Sakura lost control. She was blown away by her own power and collided with a building not far away. She slipped down the brick wall and crumpled into a ball. A tender hand messaged her aching temples.

"No!"

Sakura shot her head in the direction of the voice and saw Kaori's familiar form, followed by Sasuke, Naruto, and Kakashi. '_what are they doing here?'_ she wondered, to dazed to put much effort in her own thoughts.

"Sakura-Chan!" Naruto ran over to the barely conscious girl and wrapped an arm around her back. He helped her stand and the two shakily made their way back to the group. "What happened to her?" Naruto asked. He was referring to the deathly state Sakura was in. Her body was visibly paler, almost gray, and her sparkling eyes were dull.

Kaori watched as Naruto laid Sakura onto the soil. He pushed a stray pink strand from her eyes. "I don't know, but it doesn't look good," she said. "We have to find Jaaku. If he did what I think he did, Sakura could be in danger." Kaori un-sheathed her katana and held it in front of her as she scoped the area. "Sasuke, take Sakura and get out of here!" she ordered.

Sasuke was ready to protest but Kakashi stepped in his way. "You heard her," the jounin said. Sasuke understood the implied threat. He bent down and took his fallen teammate into his arms before bounding off into the woods. "Now were is Jaaku?" Kakashi asked after making sure the two were out of sight.

"I'm not sure…" Kaori was thrown back into a tree before she could finish her sentence. Kakashi looked at what attacked her and found a shadow demon that looked as though it was bathed in tar. Naruto screwed his face in disgust as more and more of the nasty goblin like creatures appeared. "Ow," Kaori bit through clenched teeth.

With lightning fast speed, Kaori rammed the demon that attacked her and pressed her katana into its slimy flesh. The wound made a squishing noise when she pulled out, only to reveal that no damage had been inflicted. She tried again only to have the same outcome.

Kakashi tossed her a kunai. "Try that," he suggested. Kaori did as she was told and jammed the small weapon into the demon's neck. Surprisingly, when she pulled it away, there was a dark red liquid laced against the kunai's metal. She looked at the handle and saw a that there was a talisman attached to it. She shot Kakashi a look of thanks.

Kakashi threw Naruto a Kunai with the same talisman attached and the three began their slaughter of the demons. They worked through the things trying to cut the forces down so they could find Jaaku. One by one, the demon army fell until there were no more.

Naruto wiped his kunai clean and examined the area. "Does this seem odd to any one else?" he asked. He continued to search through the piles of debris. "Were is Jaaku? You don't think we accidentally killed him do you?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"Not even if we were the luckiest people alive," Kaori said. She had an un easy look on her face. "Jaaku broke the curse seal. He's full demon right now." Her brow creased in frustration. "Actually, Sakura broke the seal."

"Sakura wouldn't do that!" Naruto yelled quick to defend his friend. "You don't know her like I do. She wouldn't do that!"

"Not if she was in the right frame of mind," Kakashi cut in. "But as we all know, Jaaku came to her when she was weakest. He probably twisted everything to make him look like a savior." Kakashi cast his eyes downward, ashamed for allowing his student to be taken like that.

"When she broke the seal, it weakened her substantially. It takes immense power to remove a seal as powerful as the one her grandfather used." Kaori explained. "Now would be the best moment or him to strike. She's powerless to stop…"

Kakashi, Naruto, and Kaori all came to the same realization.

"Damn it!"

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sasuke made a b-line through the forest, getting as far away from Tengoku as quickly as he could. He held Sakura tightly in his arms, pressed securely to his chest to protect her from the branches that reached out to far. Her body was cold against his own and he knew that eventually he would have to stop to warm her up. However, the thought of stopping seemed to careless now.

Sakura shivered, causing her whole body to shake. Sasuke noticed this and realized he would have to stop. His onyx eyes surveyed the area and found a place somewhat hidden. Landing softly on the ground, Sasuke leaned Sakura against a tree. He began to rub his hands up and down her small arms to generate heat.

"Sakura? Sakura, wake up," he demanded. He checked for a pulse and opened each eye to check for any signs of life. Finally he felt her move below him.

"Sasu-ke-kun?" She murmured as consciousness came back to her.

"Can you stand on your own?" he asked.

It wasn't the romantic, "Sakura, thank goodness you're alive!" she had been looking for, but then again, this was Sasuke.

Sakura pouted slightly, but Sasuke seemed not to notice, or care. It could go either way with he Uchiha, sakura decided. She then remembered something. "Aren't I mad at you?" she asked.

"No. You were lied to by Jaaku and confused, not mad," Sasuke told her.

"Fine, whatever you say," Sakura said waving her hand dismissively. She was far to tired to fight this one out, especially with Sasuke of all people.

Sasuke would deny it till the day he died, but he had felt a tiny bit hurt that she had been mad at him.

With her teammate's help, Sakura managed to pull herself back onto her own legs. "Wobbly," she commented. Sasuke just gave her an odd look. "What?" she inquired. At that moment, her legs gave out and she stumbled to the ground. "Owie."

"Owie?" Sasuke smirked at Sakura's childishness. "Come on, we should go see if Kaka…Kaori and the other's need help." Sakura was oblivious to his correction. She was too enthralled in the fact that Sasuke had just helped her up and hadn't released her hand yet. She stood there in a complete moment of joy.

"That sweet, Sasuke-kun." A sickening voice cooed. "Jealous of the teacher?" Sasuke spun around and saw a figure. It looked so much like Jaaku, only different. "Do you like my new "skin"?" He asked playfully. Sakura backed up into Sasuke when she saw Jaaku. "Thank you so much for returning me to my demon form, Sakura."

Sasuke stared in shock at Sakura momentarily. Demon seals were hard to break, and he recognized that Sakura would have to have great power to have removed one. More power then he had given her credit for.

"We haven't finished our deal though. I still have to pay you back," Jaaku continued. "So how 'bout those wings of yours?"

Sasuke stepped in front of Sakura, instinctively protecting her. "Stay away from her," he warned.

"My dear boy, do you really think you can stand against me?" Jaaku laughed. Sasuke's sharingan appeared in his eyes. "That puny ninja technique can't harm me." Jaaku removed his Katana from it's sheath. "Allow me to demonstrate," Jaaku said. Without a moments notice, Jaaku appeared right in front of Sasuke.

The Uchiha looked down and saw the blade as it was pulled from his stomach. He hadn't even seen the movements, yet his blood now covered his enemy's blade. Sasuke had never felt so powerless in his life. If this was that demon's true undiluted power, then Sakura was going to die.

Sasuke heard Naruto arrive with Kaori and Kakashi, but they sounded so far away. They were too late. Sasuke fell to the ground.

Sakura watched in horror as her teammate fell to his knees and slumped to the ground. Her body convulsed violently as the sick reality occurred to her.

Uchiha Sasuke was dead.

The world around her slipped away and shattered. She was no longer aware of Naruto's cries, Kakashi's screams, or Kaori's curses. She was alone now with Sasuke.

One voice broke through her revere.

'_Sakura, it's not to late.'_

With those words, Sakura fell beside Sasuke's body and held him close.

Her words were barely above a whisper as they fell from her lips.

"No."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: So how many of you want to kill me now? I know I know, I killed Sasuke. And I thought I liked happy endings. Wait…I do. Weird. Also, how could I give Sasuke such a crappy death? Man that blows. Oh well, the story isn't over yet, not by a long shot, so don't hate me too much yet.

P.S. sorry bout the cliffy.


	14. Part XIV:Wings

A/N: Wow, I sure felt the love for that last chapter. Ok, so some of you liked it, and others of you want me to burn a fiery death now. Well to console all of you, I burned my finger the other day on the stove. I take that as my punishment.

I hate to ruin everybody's fantasy, but our dear Sasuke-kun is dead. Jaaku killed him. Sorry.

Please don't stop reading the story though, I hope to redeem myself.

**G.G**: I'm glad you liked the story, thank you for the review.

**Sagitarious Devil**: Thanks for your review. Sorry about Sasuke.

**Brittany**: I promise to keep writing, but I make no promises about Sasuke. Thank you for the review though.

**Fhhjyruj**: I'll answer your review at the end of this chapter.

**Mksanime**: Thank you for the review. Here is a speedy update.

**Hao'sAnjul**: Sorry about Sasuke but I'm glad the twist was good. Thanks for reviewing.

**shinobi-Sakura**: I agree that I can't ever kill Sasuke. He could so kick my ass in a fight. But Don't worry, I will redeem myself, I promise. Also, I take no offense to the death threat. I'm aware that it comes with the job, lol. But my neighbors are beginning to complain about the angry mob outside. Anyways, thanks for the review.

**AnimeManiac0**9: I'm glad you enjoyed last chapter even though I killed Sasuke. I felt bad about it but it was all for the story, you'll understand why in this chapter. Thank you for reviewing.

**Krista**: Hey, imaginary pet turtles are notoriously fast at typing. Also, I fear their attacks. I hope this chapter made the deadline, dear lord. Thanks for reviewing.

**Txxme**: I sorry. Sasuke died, but I know what you mean about the whole SasuSaku thing. I guess you'll have to keep reading then huh? Good. Thank you for your review.

**Niebezpiczny Ksiezyc**: I'm glad you liked the fic. Thank you for reviewing!

**kyoharu-chan**: I'm glad you like the fic. This chapter has a bit more action in it. Thanks for reviewing!

**Joy-girl (2 lazy 2 sign in)**: I've never been called a fiend before, neat! Anyway, sorry bout leaving a cliffy, but I'm updating super fast so hopefully the wait wasn't too bad. Thanks for your review.

**Crasiness**: Sorry bout cliffy, I'm glad you liked it though. Thank you for the review.

**kimono princess**: I'm glad you like the story so much. Hope this update was fast enough. Thanks for reviewing.

**Shinobi Darkbeak**: Sorry about the evil ending but it had to be done. Thanks for reviewing and I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

**Little Minamino**: Sorry, I kind of rushed he end there. Sasuke's death didn't go exactly as I planned. Thank you for reviewing!

**Only Secret**: Sorry, I don't mean to be so evil. It just kind of happens. I hope the wait wasn't too long though. I felt bad about the cliffy so I decided to try and speed up the update. Thank you for reviewing.

**Sakura-Girl 2005**: To clear things up, Sasuke is dead. Sorry about that. It wasn't just to make an cliffy. But Don't hate me just yet. Read this chapter before you decide to kill me. Thank you for the review and I hope you enjoy the chapter.

Wow, that was a lot of reviews. I think that's the most I've gotten so far. Also I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed and helped me reach my goal of 100 reviews. Seriously, I would have given p on this story if it weren't for you guys.

Disclaimer: You would all kill me if I owned Naruto now, wouldn't you. Don't lie.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura held Sasuke's body in her arm as hysterical tears fell down her face in streams. The love of her life was dead and it was all her fault. She cradled the rapidly freezing body close trying not to allow the heat to escape him. "No, no, no," she chanted.

Around her, Kakashi and Naruto shared her pain. Kakashi clenched ad unclenched his fists, not sure weather to break down like his female student, or go ballistic and kill everything in sight. Though their last few days together had been awkward, Kakashi felt as if he lost part of himself. Sasuke had always been a tough student and fierce opponent, and Kakashi never expected him to go down like this.

Naruto was crying wildly pounding his fists into the earth. He pulled up blades of grass and howled in sheer pain. Uchiha Sasuke, his best friend and rival, could not have been killed. He Didn't care how much power Jaaku had now. He would pay for what he did to Sasuke.

Kaori shook and her teeth ground against each other. Fingers twitched at her katana's hilt. She may not have particularly like the brooding genius, but her first concern was Sakura and she would have had to been a fool not to notice the girl's attraction to him. It would be a wonder if she could tap into any of her power anymore. The loss of his boy would effect her desperately.

The whole group felt the loss of Uchiha Sasuke, but none more then Sakura herself. She blamed herself, and no one else. She was the one who lifted the seal and gave Jaaku all the power. Sasuke was dead now because of her. His blood stained her hands. The blood of the man she loved.

"It's a pity he had to die," Jaaku said breaking the silence. "He would have made a great demon for my army." Jaaku laughed at the thought. "No, he's to headstrong to take orders from me."

"Shut up you bastard," Naruto hissed. The familiar reddish orange chakara began to swirl around his body as the nine tail fox's power started to awaken. Kakashi pushed his head protector up to reveal his sharingan as he got into a fighting stance. Kaori held her katana up, ready to attack in a moments notice.

"I wont let you get away with what you've done. First you attack one of my students, then kill another. You will pay," Kakashi snarled. The blue lights of the chidori appeared in his hand as he focused all his chakara into it.

Sakura looked at all of her teammates as they prepared to avenge Sasuke's death.

'_Sakura, help them'_

The voice, it was Michiko's. Sakura knew she had to help her friends, but the will to do so had escaped her. Right now all she could do was watch.

Naruto attacked first, landing a firm blow to Jaaku's stomach. The demon looked more or less bored with the boy. Kakashi fallowed up with his chidori. This one effected Jaaku. He flew a few feet back before catching his balance. Before he could retaliate, Kaori slashed at his neck, effectively nicking in. Jaaku swung at the girl, but Kaori was able to dodge it by flipping backwards just in time.

Naruto preformed a few hand seals causing many more of him to appear. The kage bunshin no jutsu, one of Naruto's specialties. A group of Naruto clones attacked wail the real one and another clone stayed behind. The two formed the rasengan in Naruto's hand. By the time it was ready, all the clones had been taken out. Naruto ran full speed at the demon with murderous intent. He landed the blue orb right in Jaaku's face, sending him flying backwards again.

"Not bad," Jaaku sneered. He wiped a thin trickle of blood from his lower lip. "My turn."

Jaaku punched Naruto in the jaw causing the blond boy to stumble back. In his moment of weakness, Jaaku grabbed one of his flailing arms and spun around before removing his grip. The force sent Naruto flying straight into a tree.

Kaori attacked while Jaaku's back was turned, but Kakashi made it before her. He slammed a kunai between Jaaku's shoulder blades eliciting a scream of pain from the demon.

Sakura looked on in awe as the three worked together to fight for Sasuke. In that moment, Sakura realized she would be a part of this team. She would do something for them.

The stronger her resolve became, the more she noticed a white light that surrounded her and Sasuke. She wasn't afraid of her power anymore. She would control it, no one else.

The fighting ceased when all four noticed the state Sakura was in. the pale white light became so bright that none of then could make out her or Sasuke's shape. Not even Kakashi's sharingan could. The light burned Jaaku's skin. It was so pure, so benevolent, it was painful for him. While the others were distracted, he made his escape knowing there was nothing he could do now.

Jaaku smirked as he ran from the fight knowing exactly what was happening.

Naruto, Kakashi, and Kaori watched with anticipation as the bright light slowly faded. At first, the two leaf shinobi could hardly believe what was there in front of them. It looked like a shield of soft white feathers had encased Sakura and Sasuke. What was even more astonishing was what hid behind the feathers.

As the feathers parted, Naruto and Kakashi realized what Kaori had already figured out. They were wings. Sakura's wings. And behind the majestic downy wings was Sakura and Sasuke.

Sakura smiled softly.

Sasuke smirked.

"Takes more then a demon to stop the great Uchiha Sasuke I suppose," Sakura said warmly.

Naruto broke down once more, now to overwhelmed with joy to move. Kakashi stared in disbelief at his two students, one of which was dead two seconds ago. Kaori just smile.

There would be questions later, but now was not the time. As the feathers dispersed and the light faded, reality slowly seemed to come back. Jaaku had managed to get free, but at least Sasuke was ok.

"Sa-Sakura-Chan. How did you do that?" Naruto asked. He wiped away the tears but more came.

"I'm not sure exactly," she admitted. "But I think it had to do with the wings." Sakura grabbed one of the feathers from the air and looked at it lovingly.

"So Sasuke, what's it like to die?" Kaori asked teasingly. Sasuke smirked.

"It's…enlightening. I met some people while I was gone," he said. He glanced at Sakura quickly. They both smiled, though hers was confused.

"I think we should be finding a new camp site. We have a lot of things to discuss now that we know Jaaku is full demon. That was one thing he needed, and now that Sakura's wings have appeared he'll be tracking us even more." Kakashi pulled his head protector down to cover the sharingan. His mask hid the relief he felt for Sasuke, but Kaori noticed it in his voice.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura clung to Sasuke's arm despite his attempts to free himself from her. "Sakura, I'm not going anywhere," he promised. Sakura considered this loosening her grip slightly.

"Nuh uh," she decided gripping the Uchiha's arm more tightly. "Not worth the risk," she said smirking at him. Sasuke rolled his eyes but couldn't hid his own smirk.

"Sasuke bastard, you haven't told us anything about what its like to be dead yet!" Naruto cried angrily. Sakura shot him a deadly look.

"Leave Sasuke-Kun alone. Would you want to talk about dieing if it were you?" She asked bitterly. Naruto just pouted.

They had just finished making the camp and setting a fire and were now enjoying the peace they had. They all knew it wouldn't last however.

"It's really amazing," Kaori said. "I've watched them from a far since Sakura's birth and I thought I knew what they were like." Kaori turned her gaze to Kakashi. "But they are so much more then I pegged them for."

"I see them grow every day right up close and they still manage to surprise me." Kakashi chuckled. "But no matter how much they grow and change," he continued, nodding his head towards the bickering group, "something stay the same."

Sakura managed to hit Naruto upside the head while keeping her grip on Sasuke's arm. Truly she had mastered the art of multitasking.

"Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke, I think we need to talk," Kaori said standing up. The trio looked up and nodded in unison.

"Were do we begin?" Naruto asked.

"How bout Sakura's new ability to bring people back from the dead?" Sasuke suggested.

"No! Sakura can never do that again," Kaori shouted in a rush. She received a few odd stares. "If you ever do that again you will be powerless against Jaaku. I have never heard of any other being with wings that brought someone back from the dead and I don't want Sakura making a practice o it. We have no idea how this effects her powers."

"I know what you mean," Sasuke said, his voice grave. He shot Kaori a "we-need-to-talk" look. Kaori narrowed her purple eyes. She had some idea of what he had to talk to her about.

Sakura raised an eyebrow at the duo but that went unnoticed. Something weird was going on and the secrecy was annoying her. So far it had only caused trouble and she would stop it.

"Kaori, did you notice how Jaaku looked?" Kakashi asked, reverting the group's attention. "It was as though he was more human."

"That his demonic powers working again," Kaori said. "When he was cursed with humanity, his body began to decompose. At a slower rate then normal humans, but still. Now that he's a full demon again is body returned to the state it was in before."

"That makes sense," Naruto said thoughtfully.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at Naruto's pathetic attempt to sound like he knew what was going on. However he could understand the confusion. Only after he died to he fully understand what was going on.

Sasuke, during the short time he was dead, saw Jaaku's origins. The way he killed Sakura's grandfather. How his wife reacted to the news. The destruction Jaaku and his demon army destroyed Tengoku, and ho he waited for Sakura. He wanted her wings to appear.

Sakura looked up at Sasuke and smiled. She had been ready to die the moment she felt Sasuke's life completely drain from his body, but watching her teammates fight for him had inspired her. Without them, Sasuke might have stayed dead.

"Sakura, I think you should go to bed now," Sasuke suggested. Sakura wanted to protest but Sasuke insisted. Naruto was already fast asleep by the fire.

Once the pink haired konouchi had been securely settled into her tent, Sasuke went to Kaori.

"We need to talk, now," he said. Kaori nodded. "Sakura's grandmother tried to kill Michiko?" He blurted out.

Kaori was taken back by the Uchiha's bluntness. Kakashi also seemed shocked, though more about the news then Sasuke's way of mentioning it. "You saw that much?" Kaori asked, not bothering trying to hide it.

"Yes. Now I want to know why," Sasuke said. There was something in the tone of his voice that suggested he was angry.

"I think you should explain this," Kakashi said.

Kaori chewed the inside of her cheek before explaining. "Chihiro, Sakura's grandmother, took Shouta's death rather hard," she explained.

"So she tried to kill her own daughter?" Sasuke yelled in outrage.

"Shh," Kaori pleaded, shooting a glance at Sakura's tent. "That isn't what I said. After Shouta died, Chihiro wanted to die as well, but se didn't want to leave Michiko alone in the world. That was one reason." Kaori could tell that Sasuke nor Kakashi truly excepted that as a good excuse. "Besides that, she knew what they were going o do to Michiko. She knew they were going to use her to breed a winged child. Chihiro didn't want that kind of a life for her daughter."

"I see," Kakashi said leaning back into a tree. "She thought of it as a mercy killing. Shouta's death must have messed her up quit a bit."

Kaori nodded in agreement. "One night she slit her wrists and tried to drown Michiko in the bath. Before Michiko died, Chihiro suddenly stopped. Michiko watched as she slowly died. Some of the neighbors had arrived after hearing Chihiro's cries and found Michiko crying, soaked in bloody water."

Sasuke sat back. He was aware of all this, yet hearing what happened was different from seeing it. He was torn between pitting Sakura's grandmother and hating her.

"I think you should tell Sakura about her Father," Sasuke suggested.

Kaori agreed. The three separated to go to sleep, however Kaori stopped Sasuke. "I'm sorry," she said. "I had an opinion of you before we even met and I now know how wrong it was. I was just so angry with you for always hurting Sakura, but I think I understand now," she said.

Sasuke held her gaze for a moment before smirking. "Well, I understand you a bit better as well." Sasuke turned to walk away. "I know why you don't want to tell Sakura about the alternative. I agree with you judgment on that."

The two went to their respective tents, neither realizing that Sakura had been listening in on the whole conversation. She reminded herself not to run away again. The new about her mother was shocking, but somehow it made sense. The woman that cried in her dreams was Chihiro. It all made sense. The one thing that bothered her now was this "alternative". Tomorrow she would ask. She had a right to know.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: Please, did any of you truly believe that I was going to really kill Sasuke. Yeah right, this is a SASUSAKU! can't have one of those if one of the characters dies halfway through the story. Besides, I love happy endings! But I hope you all understand why I had to kill Sasuke and bring him back. It was somewhat pivotal to the story and will prove so later on as well.

Which brings me to this.

**Fhhjyruj:** Are you a freaking psychic? Seriously, you had the whole idea I was shooting for pegged. Get out of my head! That crazy how you knew what I was going to do. Creepy. Thanks for the review!

Hope you all enjoyed this chapy!


	15. Part XV: Konoha Konouchi

**A/N**: konichi wa mina! I'm so awesome and let me explain why. I made my sister watch episode 101 of Naruto like three times in one week (I don't care what that crow says, it was not the worst episode ever!). Then the next week, her place of work was doing an anime trivia contest and the winning question for my sister was "What is under Hatake Kakashi's mask?".

If it weren't for me and my annoying instance that she watch the show with me all the time, she wouldn't have won an Uchiha Sasuke t-shirt. (Of course since she isn't a fan of Naruto, I got the shirt. Te he!)

Review reply time Kiddies, gather round!

**Tank**: Thanks for the review. I had a feeling people were going to figure it out that Sasuke wasn't going to stay dead long, lol.

**G.G**: Sorry for not updating faster. I have a bad habit of leaving things off a bad time, lol. I'm glad you think my story is interesting though.

**Scythe195**: thank you for the compliments. It always pleases me when people enjoy my story!

**shinobi-Sakura**: I'm happy to have been redeemed. I thought bringing Sasuke back with Sakura's powers would be an interesting way to further the story as well as create a stronger bond between the two. Also, I appreciate the angry phone calls stopping, but the mob I still hanging around. The neighbors are getting kind of freaked out. I hope that doesn't mean Orochimaru is hiding out around here again. Sigh, lol.

**Tears like Crystals**: And the award for most enthusiastic review goes to drum roll YOU! I'm really happy to hear that you like my story so much. That means a lot to me. I don't think I ever got quite so many very's ever before. It made my day. Also I'm happy you understand the story, that always helps, lol.

**AnimeManiac09: **Suspense is fun! It keeps people on their toes, lol. I hope you didn't get into trouble with your dad though. Thanks for the review!

**Sagitarious Devil**: sorry about the spelling, but I'm glad it didn't get in the way of you enjoying the story. And I totally agree. Sasuke HAWTNESS!

**Xtreme Nuisance**: Mmmm, fruitcake…anyways….looks around paranoid. What kind of bad things were you thinking of cause I know likey the pain. Thanks for the review!

**WaFfleS** : I'm glad you liked the SasuSaku moments. I'm always afraid I'll make the characters OOC. However that's bound to happen to Sasuke now that he's warming up to Sakura.

**Hao'sAnjul**: Thanks! I'm glad you liked it.

**Little Minamino**: Thank you. I hope you continue to enjoy the story.

**Sasukerocks**: More is here! Please enjoy! Thank for the review.

**Yachtzee**: I'm glad to hear that. Thank you for the review!

**Krista**: I think your imaginary pet turtle need anger management classes. I'm happy you liked the last chapter so much. I was awfully proud of it myself, lol. Sorry this chapter is way past deadline.

**white-rosekiss**: Sorry to scare you, lol. Nope my story has a few more chapters to go before it's over. I'm happy tat you are enjoying it so far.

**Sakura-Girl 2005**: I felt cruel killing off Sasuke, the only thing that got me through the whole ordeal was knowing that he would be back, lol. I couldn't be that mean to Sakura.

**Shinobi Darkbeak**: Thank you for the review. I'm glad you are enjoying my story!

**Only Secret**: I know Sasuke's change was kind of sudden, but it sort of made sense in my head. I thought that Sasuke dying, for one thing, would open his eyes to a few things. Not to mention his appreciation to Sakura for resurrecting him. I just couldn't imagine him being quite as cold to her after all that.

**Xelagirl2**: I think a lot of people wanted to kill me after I killed Sasuke. The only thing that saved my life was their interest in what would happen next, lol. As always I appreciate your review!

**Disclaimer** (as done by Sasuke): Hn. (that means I own diddly.)

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Light stretched across the horizon as the sun peaked out from above the tree tops. The pale yellow color spread across the camp site. The remnants of a fire from the previous night still had that smoky smell to it.

The stale smell was what woke Sakura up. At first she tried to ignore the impending dawn but the light grew brighter with each passing second . She gave a final growl and rolled out of her sleeping bag. After doing her routine stretches, she stepped outside.

It was earlier the she imagined and the rest of the camp was quite save for Naruto's snoring. Sakura sat by the burned out fire and contemplated what she would do until her team woke up. To her left, Sakura heard a snapping noise to her left and saw Kaori emerge from the woods.

"Kaori san," Sakura said as she stood up to greet the older woman. "I thought you were still asleep."

"I could say the same for you," Kaori said. She and Sakura sat down together. "Why are you up sp early?" she asked.

"Couldn't sleep. I've got a lot on my mind," Sakura admitted. Kaori nodded.

"That's probably an understatement. I wont pretend I understand what you are going through."

Sakura stirred the ground with her foot. The silence around the two women was unbelievably awkward.

The same question nagged at the back of Sakura's mind. The alternative. She wanted to know what it was, and why Kakashi and Kaori felt it was better to hide it. If there was another way, a better way, she wanted to know about it.

"Kaori san…"

"His name was Hashinaka Heero," Kaori interrupted. "Your father, I mean," she added quickly.

Sakura gawked at the brunette for a moment. She regained her posture and cleared her throat. "What?" she finally managed to say.

"I know. That came out of know were, but you should know about the man," Kaori explained. "You've heard so much about your mother, I thought you might like to know about him."

It was strange that the idea of her birth father hadn't bothered her before. She wondered what he was like, of course. However, with everything that was going on Sakura didn't have time to wonder about him.

"Hashinaka Heero?" Sakura repeated. She liked that name. "What was he like?"

"Well, lets just say you got your taste in men from Michiko," Kaori said. Se cracked a small smile. Sakura shared it. "He was cold, and kind of heatless. It was understandable though, considering the situation." Sakura gave her an odd stare.

Kaori ignored Sakura's look. "I know you've been questioning were you belong," she stated rather boldly. "Maybe you even question the Harunos," Kaori added. Sakura's eyes shifted back to the ground. It wasn't fun being transparent to a stranger. "You shouldn't, though. They love you, and they have good reason to, Sakura sama. You are a strong, reliable person who cares about life and the people you cherish. You wear your heart on your sleeve despite the life you've chosen," Kaori said. She placed a comforting hand on Sakura's shoulder and smiled. "They are your parents, and I'm sure no one could ever tell them otherwise."

Sakura felt as though she wanted to cry, not because she was sad. No. She wanted to cry for being so stupid. Sakura had indeed been questioning the love she received from the Harunos. However, Kaori manager to erase all the doubts she carried. It was amazing that she knew Sakura so well. Sakura felt connected to Kaori for the first time since they had met.

"As for whether or not you belong in Konoha," Kaori said as she reached into her pocket, "just look at this," she said. Sakura watched with interest as Kaori produced a piece of blue fabric from her pocket. Upon closer inspection, Sakura realized what it was.

"Is that? But I thought Michiko was from…"

"It was your father's. He was a Konoha elite," Kaori said. She handed Sakura the hitai-ate. "You weren't just brought to Konoha for no reason."

"This is all, what I mean is…this is confusing." Sakura tightened her grip on the metal plate with the Konoha symbol on it. "If he was from Konoha, how did Hero meet my mother?"

"Well, I was getting to that," Kaori said. "As I mentioned, Hero how a sour disposition when he first arrived at Tengoku. He and his team mates were on their way back from mission when they were ambushed by a pack of rouge shinobi," Kaori explained. "Hero and his team believed they were little threat, but the ninja's proved to be more powerful then they expected. Hero was the only one who survived."

Sakura's eye grew wide. She thought about that and stifled a laugh. Kaori gave Sakura a confused look. Waving her arms frantically, Sakura forced herself to regain her composure. "I'm sorry, but you weren't kidding when you said my mother and I have the same taste in men. I guess we both have a thing for survivors."

Kaori gave Sakura an amused look and chuckled. "That hardly deserved a laugh, Sakura sama," although she herself was laughing. It was nice to enjoy each others company for the morning. It was hard to find amusement in anything with everything that has happened.

"I know, I'm sorry," sakura said. "However, it did feel good to laugh," she added.

"Anyways," Kaori said, "Hero was found half dead just outside the village. He was brought in and cared for by my father. That's how Michiko was able to meet him. At first Hero wouldn't talk to anyone, but slowly he opened up to Michiko. He was unaware, at the time, of her situation. Michiko wanted to tell him so badly, but my father told her not to."

Sakura inched closer to Kaori as she became absorbed into the story. She could almost see the scenes take place as the older konouchi explained them.

"Michiko became pregnant with you, and decided it was time to tell Hero. She was nervous the whole time, afraid that he would reject her after knowing the truth. Boy was she surprised when he got down on one knee and asked her to marry him. Of course, Otone and I being the little spies that we were, burst into the room to give our congratulations."

Sakura laughed at that.

"They were married in secret, since the villagers still wanted to use Michiko to breed a human with wings. The newlyweds decided they should leave Tengoku. Together they were going to run away to Konoha. Otone and I were thirteen at the time, and our father told us we would go with them. After all, it was our duty to protect you." Kaori gave a weak smile, but Sakura already knew this story did not have a happy ending.

"The night they were going to leave, you were born. That when Jaaku attacked. They came straight for Michiko while she was still in labor. Hero held them off as long as he could, and as soon as you were born, he told my sister and I to go on ahead of him with you. As I took you into my arms, Otone began to cry. I looked over and saw why." She paused. A tear rolled down Kaori's cheek. "Michiko had died."

Sakura felt herself begin to tear up as well. The whole situation was more then she could bear. However, Sakura knew she had to learn what happened. "What happened to Hero?" she asked.

Kaori held back her sobs and continued. "I think he knew he was going to doe that night. He told Otone and I to take you to his sister in Konoha. He said the Hokage would be waiting at the front gates for us. We left, knowing we would never see him again," Kaori explained. Her fists clenched tightly.

"The villagers knew about Michiko's pregnancy, even though we tried to hide it. They offered her no help when he demons attacked even though it was their own wish to have a human child with wings. They were so blind, they never realized that Michiko was human!" Kaori fell from the log she was sitting on, to her knees. "More human then they were. She was just gifted with a bloodline that appeared in children after Jaaku was created. Her power was borrowed from heaven," she cried. "She and the others were supposed to save us, but they were to god damn scared to realize it."

Sakura slipped down beside Kaori and wrapped her arms around the crying woman's shoulders. "It's alright, Kaori san. You saved my life and although my parents and Otone are dead, I bet they are proud of you," Sakura said comfortingly. Kaori shuddered a little, and allowed herself to calm down.

"There is just one thing I don't understand," Sakura said. "If I was supposed to go to Hero's sister, how did I end up with The Haruno's?" She asked.

"You did go to your aunt's house," Kaori said, wiping her eyes, " Hashinaka Emiko. She is your aunt. However, she was also married, to Haruno Ryuichi."

Sakura stared in bewilderment for a moment. Her parents, were actually her aunt and uncle.

"So you see, the Haruno's have a very good reason to love you," Kaori added. "And one more thing," Kaori said. "That locket you've been wearing, was a gift from Hero to Michiko after he found out she was pregnant."

"He must have been a good man," Sakura said smiling sadly.

"He was," a new voice interrupted. Sakura and Kaori spun around to see Uchiha Sasuke leaning against a tree not far from them.

"Sasuke Kun!" Sakura shouted in surprise.

"Don't you know better then to eaves drop, brat?" Kaori yelled flailing her fist in the air. Sasuke just smirked.

"How do you know about my father?" Sakura asked ignoring Kaori's curses.

"I met him."

Both Kaori and Sakura stared dumbly at the Uchiha prodigy waiting for an explanation. "I died, remember," he said rudely.

"Wee how the hell are we supposed to know what happens when someone dies?" Kaori asked irritably. Sasuke smirked more. He was enjoying Kaori's anger. Somehow, the two seemed to have come to an understanding after he died.

"Sasuke kun," sakura peeped in, reminding Sasuke of her presence.

"Hero San, he told me to tell you he was proud of you. So is Michiko," Sasuke said. Sakura beamed at the dark haired boy. "And apparently they approve of someone. I didn't really understand it. Hero just said you had your mother's taste for the cold. Any idea what that means?" Sasuke asked.

Sakura and Kaori burst out laughing. Sasuke felt odd at that point. "Right," he said cautiously.

"Sasuke Teme! Where is Sakura Chan?" Naruto's loud voice boomed through the camp. Kakashi puffed out of no where scaring Sakura and Kaori out of their laughter.

"There you are," he said. Though his face was hidden, Sakura could tell he was quite pleased with himself for sneaking up on Kaori.

"That's not nice," the brunette whined, and she punched Kakashi in the shoulder.

Naruto came charging to the fire place and wrapped his arms around Sakura. "Sakura Chan! I thought you ran away again when you weren't in your tent," he nearly cried. Sakura begged for air, but the fox boy wouldn't budge.

**Bam!**

Naruto was on the ground nursing the bump on his head that Sasuke had given him.

'_Shesh. When did we all get so comfortable around each other?_' Sakura wondered to herself. She didn't mind however. To her it seemed like things were becoming normal again. That thought gave her hope.

'_You aren't a monster, you are a konouchi of Konoha. Nothing that you have heard in the past few hours changes that_.'

Sakura smiled at Sasuke's words. He had been right all along.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

**A/N**: Well it took me forever but the chapter is out! Celebration time, come on! I finally got to talk about Sakura's dad and how Sasuke was right about Sakura being a Konoha konouchi. I'm not sure what Sakura's parent's names are in the anime so f I'm wrong feel free to correct me. Also, if anyone know Sasuke's parent's names I love to know that as well.

Thanks for putting up with my late updates, but please keep reviewing!

I'm going to go cuddle up to my Sasuke plushie and watch some well deserved TV now!


	16. Part XVI: Change

A/N: Hey people out there! This story is hitting its last leg here. I want to thank everyone who read my story. The last few chapters will hopefully be put out with in a week from each other. I'm going to estimate that there are only about three more chapters to get through.

Review Reply Time!

**Hao'sAnjul **: bows for the clapping thank you, thank you.

**Shinobi Darkbeak**: Thank you for showing your love!

**Noyesgirl**: Thank you for the review. I'm glad you like the story.

**yinyang-sensei**: I'm happy to hear you like the story so far. Hope you continue to.

**Xelagirl2**: Sorry about all the cliffys, lol. It keeps people on their toes. I'm happy you liked the chapter and thank you for your kind words. This story was actually a lot deeper then I thought it would be too, even though I pretty much had it planned out from the beginning. Some stuff just popped into my mind while I was writing and I had to add it, lol.

**neu chi no nai u**: Thank you, I'm glad you liked it!

**Little Minamino**: Haha, I liked that part too! I wasn't sure how to fit it in at first but through determination, I managed it, lol.

**shinobi-Sakura**: thank you so so much! I really appreciate the review. I'm glad you like my story so much. I really wanted to make sure everything connected and there were no loose ends, which was one of the reasons I went back and explained Sakura's true origins. I was afraid people would be kind of bored with the chapter but I'm glad that wasn't the case. I read your stories and I must say that they were really good. I hope you continue to pursue them!

**Sya0ran**: Wow, you are so nice. I'm happy to hear that my story is one of your favorites! I do try to make my stories make sense (although not all at once, lol) so I'm glad you are able to enjoy it.

**Tears like Crystals**: Thank you for the spelling tips, lol. I had no idea I was spelling kunoichi wrong this whole time! blushes. You can't steal my Sasuke plushie though, cause then I'll have no one to sleep with at night! Besides Gaara and my massive supply of teddy bears, lol. I have a stuffed animal collection that could rival a five year old's (and I'm 18, O.O;).

**Imperial Angel**: STRUDEL! Nice. Thank you for the review!

**D' Animator**: Thank you! I'm glad you find my fic unique. Its actually Happy Hanukah for me (although I really don't mind cause I partake in both holidays). Season's Greetings!

**CrAzY-SiLLy-Me**: Aw, do you not own a plushie? You can borrow my Sasuke-Kun on the weekends, lol. Thank you for the review!

**Kyoko992**: My Gaara and Sasuke-kun plushies will save me! Sorry to say but this fic is actually almost done with. (Psst; keep an eye out for a sequel though!)

**G.G**: I'm trying to update faster, see? This one was a fast update, lol. I'm glad you are enjoying the fic.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sasuke sat outside the camp on a low branch. He enjoyed the calm atmosphere that had evaded him for so long. Everything was crazy now so he hadn't been able to relax and enjoy his usual down time. He could hear his team below making their usual noises. Naruto was complaining about something, and Kakashi was just ignoring him while he spoke with Kaori. There was, however, one voice missing from the group.

Sakura.

Sasuke pressed his head against the tree's bark. It wasn't exactly comfortable, but he was to busy thinking to be bothered by that.

Lately the pink haired kunoichi had been on his mind. More so then usual. He had forced himself to believe that it was due to the circumstances, but now that excuse was failing him. Sasuke realized he was watching Sakura more closely then a person would who was just protecting a team mate.

Another thought was bugging Sasuke. Before he died, Sasuke was becoming more and more apprehensive of Kakashi. It just didn't sit right with Sasuke that he felt so on edge with the man. Kakashi had trained him since he was twelve and assisted in his rescue.

It bothered him. Were was this aggression coming from? Sasuke tried to think of all the times Kakashi had made him angry in the past few days.

_Sasuke stood there with his fists clenched as his teeth grit against each other. He was not thrilled with Kakashi so blatantly eavesdropping on his and Sakura's conversations. _

_Sakura's eyes again darted to Sasuke, who seemed to be looking at her shoulder were Kakashi had recently had his hand._

"_Jealous of the teacher?" _

"Damn it," he cursed himself. Jaaku had hit a nerve, although Sasuke was sure he'd never admit it. He probably would never admit that he was jealous of Kakashi either. But that was what had been eating at him this whole time. It wasn't as though he thought that Sakura and Kakashi held romantic feelings for each other. Besides, that wasn't any of his business to begin with. He didn't have any say in Sakura's love life.

Sasuke felt himself growl.

It was something else that was eating at him. Something that bothered Sasuke enough to feel distant from his sensei. What about Sakura and Kakashi's relationship angered him so much? It was like any other relationship that a teacher and student would have. He looks out for her, cares about her, knows her.

That's when it hit Sasuke. He Didn't know Sakura as well as Kakashi did. This whole affair, Kakashi had been spewing out little secrets that Sakura herself wasn't aware of. That was what pissed him off so much.

Sasuke slapped himself on the forehead with the realization. Of course he didn't understand why he wanted to know about Sakura, but those were thoughts for another day. Sasuke couldn't believe he had let such a small thing invade his thoughts. He knew Sakura, she told him everything…most of time…sort of.

Now he was feeling stupid again. Sakura knew him, as well as she knew Naruto. She even knew their fighting habits. But when it came to her, Sasuke felt as clueless as Naruto in a maze. Sakura cared more then anyone he knew.

Sasuke hated thinking suddenly.

Below him, Sasuke felt someone. He looked down and found Sakura walking through the woods. She looked different to him somehow, although her physical appearance hadn't changed. There was something he couldn't understand about her that made him watch her every move.

"Sakura," he called. She looked up, slightly startled by his presence. She hadn't been aware that he was around, or anyone else for that matter. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Oh, Sasuke-Kun" she greeted. "I was just trying to get some alone time. Everything has been so crazy lately," Sakura said. Sasuke nodded in understanding. "why are you out here?" she asked.

"Same as you," he replied.

"Oh," Sakura said looking away. **'Damn it! Say something!'** her inner voice raged.

"Sakura," Sasuke said again. "Do you remember…" Sasuke stopped himself. "Never mind," he decided. He wasn't sure what had made him think to bring up her promise, but he was glad he stopped himself.

Sakura gave Sasuke an odd look but didn't press the matter. Things were always tricky with the Uchiha and it was always better not to force something out of him.

"Ah, Sasuke-Kun. It's getting dark, we should head back to he camp," Sakura suggested. "Naruto may think I've run away again," she added with a smile.

Sasuke noticed that she seemed more herself just then. He hid his smile under a smirk and dropped down from the tree. He lead Sakura back to the camp were the other's were waiting.

Kaori stood up to greet them. She seemed serious now. Whatever it was she and Kakashi were discussing, it had put a solemn mood in the camp. Sasuke was sure they were discussing what to do about Jaaku now that he was a full demon and Sakura's wings had appeared.

Kakashi gave Sasuke a grave look as he addressed the team. "We need a plan."

Sasuke and Sakura took a seat around he fire that was now burning while Naruto sat beside Kakashi and Kaori. The group was silent for a moment, none wanting to break the awkward setting around them. Sakura's eyes were traveling around the group wondering if anyone would say anything. The hope of that seemed futile, so she cleared her throat.

"We're completely fucked," she stated dully. At first she received wide eyed stares from the group due to her boldness, but no one could deny that she had hit the nail on the head. "Jaaku is a full demon and my wings have sprouted. So in simpler words, everything went according to Jaaku's plan. It's only a matter of time before he starts coming after us…me, with the intent to kill."

"Don't worry Sakura-Chan! I'll protect you," Naruto said proudly. He puffed out his chest and smiled broadly at his female team mate. "Jaaku wont lay a finger on you."

Sakura forced herself to smile at the blond boy. It was obvious that he had little idea of just what they were into. A pang of guilt struck her when she realized that Naruto was unaware of the situation because no one, not even herself, had explained to him the circumstances they were facing. In fact, Sakura hadn't really talked to him at all since the mission started.

As much as it pained her to do so, Sakura had prepped herself for the worst case scenario. She knew there was a likeliness that she could die. Staring at Naruto, Sakura knew that she would regret dying before seeing everyone she cared about one more time.

"Naruto, thank you," she said. The fox boy gave Sakura and odd look, but smiled back just the same. Unconsciously, the kunoichi moved closer to Sasuke. He looked down at her and saw the fear she was trying to hide. He Didn't really think much as his hand captured hers behind their backs.

More then a little shocked, Sakura stared back at Sasuke. She felt herself wanting to cry. Everything was going to be different now. Every choice would be life or death. As Sasuke's grip tightened, she became more aware of that, just as he had. Something nagged at the back of her head that she could not suppress.

'**Tell him you love him.'**

Sakura opened her mouth and shut it immediately.

'**What are you doing? Tell him now!'**

Sakura squeezed Sasuke's hand. She felt her chest becoming heavy. She was more scared then every in her life as the team sat together debating their options. It was already clear to both her and Sasuke what had to be done.

Her green eyes met his dark orbs and a mutual understanding as shared.

"There's only one thing we can do," Sasuke said.

"We have to end this," Sakura said quietly. All eyes fell on her. "We have to turn the tables. It's time to go after Jaaku."

Kakashi breathed in deeply and ran a hand through his silver mane. He had been thinking the same thing, however he knew the risks more then Sakura. It surprised him that Sasuke would agree with her, considering he knew the consequences. "Are you sure this is what you want?" he asked.

"What?" Kaori screamed, jumping up in anger. "You can't honestly think that's the answer. If we attack then we might as well place a bow on Sakura and scream happy birthday while we're at it."

Sasuke stood up, releasing Sakura's hand and glared at the brunette. "And you think its better if we keep running? That's how you want Sakura to spend the rest of her life?" he asked. His voice was cold. Kaori was caught off guard by his sudden hostility.

"No…no. I want this to be over, but I don't think meeting Jaaku head on is wise. I just wish there was another way."

"Well there doesn't seem to be one," Kakashi said. Kaori closed her eyes and sat down in defeat. Sasuke fallowed suit.

"Don't worry, Kaori-Chan," Naruto said. "you've got the future Hokage on your team."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Tsunade rested her head against the metal desk and heaved a sigh. She hadn't been sleeping well since Kakashi's team left. There was almost no word on their progress as of late which only managed to make the Hokage even more irritable.

A scratching noise caught Tsunade's attention and brought her gaze to the door. Without much thought she opened it and a brown and blue blur rushed in. The Godaime spun around and saw one of Kakashi's dogs sitting on her desk.

"It's about damn time," Tsunade barked at the small dog. Pakun just shrugged.

"Just hand over the note," the Hokage demanded stubbornly. Pakun bent down for her and she took the folded piece pf paper. After reading it carefully, Tsunade glared at Pakun with fire in her eyes.

"He's going to do what?" She bellowed. "I sent them out of this village to avoid that fight, not so they could go charging in to it! Damn it!"

Tsunade hit her fist into the desk and cursed again. Shizune ran in looking rather worried. "Tsunade-Sama, what is it?" She asked.

"Get me ANBU team three and the Nara cell, ASAP!" the Hokage yelled. Shizune nodded weakly and ran from the room. "They're getting back up whether he wants in or not."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura placed her kunai into the small pouch that she kept strapped to her leg carefully. She made sure to pack extra explosion tags and chakra enhancers. She place her father's hitai-ate in the pouch at first, the removed it. She held the fabric tenderly in her hand for a moment imaging how Heero would wear it. She fastened the blue material around her arm like Shikamaru wore his.

As she finished her packing, Sasuke called through the tent. "Sakura, can I come in?"

"H-hai, Sasuke-Kun," she said nervously. Sakura unconsciously held her breath as she felt her hand tingle were he held her. Sasuke entered the tent, but didn't look directly at Sakura. Although it was dark, the pink kunoichi thought she saw a slight blush on Sasuke's face. "is some-something the m-m-matter?" she asked.

She mentally scolded herself for acting like a twelve year old. Not even Hinata stuttered like that any more.

"No, nothings wrong. I just…wanted to talk," Sasuke said. Sakura bit her lower lip and nodded. The two stood there for a moment before Sakura realized she should offer for him to sit.

"Sasuke-Kun, um, would you like to sit." Sakura cringed at her own nervousness. She wasn't exactly sure why she had regressed six years, but it was awfully annoying.

Sasuke shook his head. "No. Look Sakura, tomorrow is going to be dangerous," Sasuke said. "Lately I've had a lot on my mind, and I don't think it would be wise to go on the offense with these…thoughts."

Sakura gave him a confused stare. "Um, would…would you like to talk…about your, thoughts?" Sakura asked nervously. It was so odd to be uncomfortable around each other.

Sasuke seemed to be having his own little war with himself. He looked ready to pound his head into the ground actually. "No, I don't want to talk about it," he said gruelingly.

"Oh," Sakura said somewhat disappointed. He was right. Tomorrow was going to be dangerous and she had hoped that they would have resolved something before then. That seemed hopeless now though.

Sasuke turned to leave, but stopped. He jerked back a little, hesitated, then turn around fully and marched right up to Sakura. At first, Sakura was shocked at his sudden actions and backed up. She stopped though when his face became so close to hers that she could feel his breath on her skin.

"You are so annoying," he said, barely above a whisper. Suddenly his lips pressed against hers in a powerful kiss.

'_If you stay here, we can be happy…together.'_

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: OOOOOH! Sasuke and Sakura are Kissing! I wish I was just a little more mature, lol. Whew, I myself was beginning to doubt whether or not it would ever happen. Yay for Sakura though, woot! Hope you all like the little bits of romance I finally added. Please show your love by reviewing!


	17. Part XVII: Reinforcments

A/N: Hey there my lovelies. I got a lot of nice reviews for the last chapter, so I take it that you are al as happy as I am that Sasuke and Sakura kissed. Sorry it was short and sweet (and kind of a cliff hanger) but I didn't make you wait to long so no killing me, okay?

Review Reply Time!

**Michelle**: I'm glad you like the story! Thank you for the review.

**A Crazy Girl of Many Names**: don't get me wrong, I love the little fox boy as much as the next person, so I do feel bad about not giving him a lot of screen time. However, like you said, this is a Sakura centric story. That's why Naruto really hasn't been given a chance to fight Jaaku. I will try and make Naruto a more pronounced character (just not this chapter). Please bear with me. Thank you for your review!

**Imperial Angel**: Glad you liked the chapter. Oi, I'm going to get fat off strudel, lol.

**Xelagirl2**: Sorry I kept you up at night, lol. I know, I suck. I'm so mean with my cliffhangers. Sorry. Glad you liked the chapter though!

**Rafaela16**: Thank you for the review. I'm glad that you like the story. There will be more Sasusaku moments to come, promise. Plus, if you want, I have a few Sasusaku one-shots that you may like floating around this site.

**Krista**: But if I have amnesia how will I finish the story? You'll never know how it ends. Then who will have the last laugh? That's right, me. Even though I wont know why I'm laughing…anyways, here's an update! Woot!

**Nemuri Shi**: There will be hugging! Lol. Anyways, I hope my email explained a few things, but if you still have questions please don't hesitate to ask. Thank you for your review!

**UchihaSakura87**: Your review made me smile a lot. I'm so glad you like my story. I wanted to make Sasuke's "approach" realistic given the circumstances. I'm glad you liked it. I was kind of worried that it would seem ooc. Thank you for the review!

**Kimchi77 **: thank you for the review, I'm glad you like my story!

**Koneko101**: happy new years (since its past Christmas, lol) thank you for the review!

**Hersheys Rocks**: I'm glad you like the story, and that the characters seem realistic. Thank you for the review.

**BloodRuby**: Woot! I'm glad that you love my story. Thank you for the review!

**Little Minamino**: I felt immature cause I was giggling when I wrote that, lol. Yay for Sakura getting a kiss!

**uchihasakura 3**: I take it you like? Hope I didn't make you wait too long.

**Shinobi Darkbeak**: Thanks for the review, I get much encouragement when I have someone who reviews all my chapters! I hope you also enjoy this one too.

**ravefan-0654**: I'm glad you like! Thank you for the review!

**Dreamerz**: Woot! I was excited for the Sasusaku kiss too! I'll deff check out your story as well.

**Only Secret**: Cookie! starts to jump around too woot! Yay for Sakura and Sasuke kissing. Thank you for the review!

**neu chi no nai u **: AW! that's so cute. Thank you!

**DevilsLittleSister**: I'd fear you more if your review didn't make me smile so much! "watch out for the silent ones" ROFL! Sasuke is awesome, even with the RAPE, just kidding. Can't rape the willing .

**CrAzY-SiLLy-Me**: Hooray for Sakura indeed! My Sasuke plushie huggels you!

**Sakura-Girl 2005**: So much love! Thank you for the review!

**Tears like Crystals**: I had to write that, it was to cute, lol. Thank you for the review!

**Sya0ran**: I'm glad you like. Sorry I missed Christmas, but New Years is just as good, right? Hope you enjoy!

OMG! That was a lot of review. You people have no idea how much I love to get reviews! I Smile for a long time after I read each of them. But dear lord, for the first time I nearly went crazy replying to them all. My comp shut down right as I finished up before I could save and I lost all my replies. droops head but I was determined to get this chapter out for the new year WITH the replies, cause I love all of you! So please enjoy!

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

It was surreal, to put it mildly. As Sakura stood there with her eyes opened wide and her arms dangling helplessly at her sides, she could only hope this wasn't a dream. However, when she felt Sasuke tense and begin to pull away, Sakura's mind acted quickly. She didn't want him to think her unresponsive behavior meant his actions were unwanted.

Hell, it was more then wanted.

Quickly, Sakura wrapped her arms around Sasuke's neck and moved closer to his body. She felt his body loosen again. His hands, which rested against her shoulders from when he grabbed her, trailed down her arms slowly, allowing his fingertips to trace her smooth skin. One arm snaked around her waist as his other hand combed through her hair.

Sakura pushed up, standing on her toes, to deepen the kiss. She pulled herself closer to his body, enjoying his warmth. Her hands moved to his face were she cupped his chin. Their lips separated for breath but when Sasuke moved in to begin again, Sakura stepped back. She took in a deep breath as though she had been drowning and looked up into Sasuke's face.

"Sakura, I…"

"No," Sakura interrupted. "Please don't say anything," she added more quietly. Sasuke gave her a curious look, unsure of her actions. "Now Isn't the time," Sakura said carefully. She didn't want Sasuke to misunderstand her. "It's just, with everything going on now, whatever you say will sound like good bye," she admitted.

"I'm not going anywhere," Sasuke promised. He stepped toward her and reached out for her arm. Sakura allowed him to pull her against him. "I promise I wont go anywhere."

"It happened once already. I lost you. I really lost you," Sakura said as she nuzzled into Sasuke's vest. Her hands grasped the fabric frantically and pull herself closer. "It was by mere chance that you're still here, and I don't want to lose you again," she cried.

"Shhh, Sakura. I underestimated him last time. It wont happen again," Sasuke rubbed Sakura's back in a circular motion soothing her.

"And what if I die?" she asked. Her voice cracked from a hiccup. "What if I can't stop him?" Sakura buried her face into Sasuke's chest.

"You are the strongest kunoichi I know. The student of the fifth Hokage, a medic nin second to know one, and a valued member of team seven," Sasuke said confidently. "Besides that you have four people to watch your back."

"Sasuke-Kun."

"And you have a promise to keep," Sasuke said, taking Sakura's chin in his hand. Sakura sniffled and gulped. Her eyes were clouded with tears and she wiped them away furiously. "I…"

"If you really believe that everything will be alright, then wait until we get back to Konoha." Sakura stared intently into Sasuke's eyes, demanding his agreement.

"Alright," he said. Sakura let out a small sigh and gave Sasuke a weak smile.

"Thank you."

Sasuke ran his hand through Sakura's hair and pulled her closer to him. He rested his chin on the top of her head and found he enjoyed how well her body molded to his own. "Come on, you need your rest," Sasuke said. He helped Sakura onto her sleeping mat and sat with her until she fell asleep. He gave her one last glance before he headed back to his own tent.

Outside, Kakashi and Kaori were sitting around the fire, waiting for him.

"Did you tell her?" Kaori asked.

"Tell her what?" Sasuke asked. He sat down across from the older shinobi and folded his hands together. "If you are talking about the alternative, no. I didn't tell her anything," he said.

Kakashi gave Sasuke a knowing look. "Tomorrow is going to be very stressful for her," he stated. "I think it would be best for you to cover her at all times."

"I was planning on it," Sasuke said.

"The less she has to fight, the less likely she is to realize the alternative" Kaori commented. "I don't think Jaaku will tell her, considering it would diminish his ability to use her."

"You don't think she'll figure it out on her own, do you?" Kakashi asked. He tone was serious. "If Sakura wants to defeat the demons badly enough, she might just unlock that power without even realizing it."

"Do you really believe that someone could do that? Just decide they want to give up their life to destroy a bunch of demons without realizing that was a possibility?" Kaori asked sarcastically.

Sasuke smirked. "You Don't know Sakura that well, do you?" he teased.

"What did you say brat?" Kaori raised her fist angrily at the Uchiha.

"Calm down you two," Kakashi said. "I don't think Sakura will use her life force to stop Jaaku. She doesn't know she has the ability to do that and before she found out she had wings she never tapped into that power. As long as Sakura stays a good distance away from Jaaku, she wont die."

"What do you mean, "give up my life force"?" Sakura asked as she stumbled from her tent. She wiped the sleep from her eyes groggily and eyed the group suspiciously. "I know there is an alternative and I think I have a right to know what it is," Sakura said.

"Sa-Sakura-Sama? Wha-what?" Kaori stared in fear at the pink haired girl who was now fully awake. It was to late to cover it up at this point though.

"The alternative, what is it?" Sakura demanded.

Kakashi sighed loudly and looked from Kaori's worried face to Sasuke's 'don't you dare say it' glare. "I don't have much of a choice do I?" he said slightly frustrated.

"Kakashi-sensei, spill," Sakura said.

Sasuke groaned and Kaori clenched her jaw.

Kakashi rubbed his temples. "Ok, Sakura. You want to know the alternative?" Sakura nodded, frustrated at this point. "You have the ability to do the opposite of what Jaaku wants," he said gaining a confused stare from his female student. "You can rid the world of demons," he explained.

"Rid the world of…even the kyuubi?" Sakura asked, slightly worried. She spared Naruto's tent a glance.

"No," Kaori said. "only demons like Jaaku. That's what your bloodline was made for." Sakura looked confused again. "It has to do with Minako's death. She didn't just die of a broken heart. When Senichi became Jaaku, she spent her last amount of energy creating a power that would be able to stop him. The process took her life," Kaori said. "When she died, however, she had no one to pass the bloodline onto, and so she left it up to fate to choose who would have the wings next. However, since the villagers never allowed the winged to procreate, it was never designated to a specific clan."

"Ok, but then what's so bad about the alternative?" Sakura questioned. "I mean, if it can get rid of the enemy then I'm all for it," she said.

"Except that if you do that, you will die," Sasuke said. Sakura spun around to face him, not sure if she had heard correctly.

"What?"

"In order to destroy Jaaku with that method, it would take all of your life force. It would kill you. Not to mention that we still don't know what kind of effect your powers had when you brought Sasuke back." Kakashi explained.

"Oh," was all Sakura could manage. She felt her knees weaken as she took in the information. Sakura sat down with Sasuke's help.

"It's ok, we will be enough to stop Jaaku from getting to you. The situation wont require you to do anything…rash." Kakashi said.

"How are we enough?" Kaori asked. "We're five against hundreds. The odds aren't in our favor," She said. "We shouldn't do this. We need back up."

"Ask and you shall receive." A group of shinobi appeared from the forest and surrounded the group. At first, Kaori was apprehensive, but she saw Sakura's face light up and soon understood what was happening.

"Sakura-San! I will keep you safe from the dark forces that wish to do you harm!" Lee shouted. He removed his ANBU mask and leaped over to the shocked kunoichi only to be stopped by Tenten.

"Sorry, Lee. I think Sakura's already got a knight in shinning armor," She said pointing to Sasuke's possessive hold on Sakura's waist.

"That's new," Ino said, chuckling slightly. "So Sakura, didn't want to let me beet you to the alter?" she teased.

Sakura blushed. "Shut up, pig," she muttered. Ino and Tenten just laughed.

"So these are Konoha's reinforcements eh?" Kaori said finally. She eyes the group carefully. She recognized most of them. The blond girl, Ino, that was Sakura's friend and rival. Tenten, the weapons master of Konoha, Lee, the prize student of Kakashi's rival, Neji, a highly ranked ANBU captain, Shikamaru, Ino's lazy genius of a fiancé, and Kiba, the dog trainer. Kiba, Neji, and Lee were all strong ANBU and the other three were recognized elite.

"Who the hell are you?" Neji asked. He narrowed his eyes on the older shinobi.

"She's the reason I'm alive today," Sakura said, defending Kaori. Neji was not a trusting person, but he knew when to back down. "I take it Tsunade explained to you why you are all here," Sakura said looking from face to face. A good number of her friends were here now. Some sort of relief washed over her. "Then we should all get some rest. Tomorrow will be a long day."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"So, when did you and Sasuke become an item?" Ino asked, placing her supplies on the ground. Tenten stopped making her bed and began to listen with interest.

Ino was met with a pillow to the face. "That's none of your concern," Sakura said light heartedly. She was actually very happy to have her friends here to help her through this time. Even if they didn't realize what it meant to her. "Besides, we aren't even an "item"," Sakura defended.

"Tel Sasuke that," Tenten said laying out on her bed. "He seemed awfully possessive of you when Lee started his "Sakura-San" stuff." Sakura pouted at the brunette and twirled a kunai defiantly between her fingers.

"Don't mess with her, Tenten. Sakura will go crazy bitch on your ass," Ino joked. She turned her attention back to the pink haired kunoichi. "So I hear you brought Sasuke-Kun back from the dead. I'm sure his fan club will forever be grateful," She teased. "To bad you guys aren't an item, they'll show no mercy," Ino added. She was smiling slyly.

Sakura could almost see the gears turning in her blond friends head. It was cute if anything. Ino was trying to make Sakura jealous of a bunch of girls that would remain faceless to the Uchiha prodigy. Either that, or make Sakura spill about some secret relationship. Sakura grinned evilly. She was so willing to play along.

"Well, if they don't show any mercy, I guess I'll have to ask my Sasuke-kun to watch out for me. He'll keep me safe," Sakura said dreamily. She clasped her hands together and sighed. Ino and Tenten just gawked at her. Sakura smirked, ready to add the last little bit. "I wonder if he'll kiss me in public like he did just before you all arrived."

Ino's eyes bugged out and Tenten fell over in shock. "WHAT!"

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Shikamaru, Naruto, Kiba, and Lee stared wide eyed at the girls' tent. Neji and Sasuke just rolled their eyes. "Women are so troublesome," Shikamaru said, recovering from shock.

Sasuke smirked to himself. He hid it when Neji sent him a questioning glance. "So this Jaaku guy is the big bad eh? He doesn't sound so bad," Kiba said confidently.

"He killed Sasuke," Neji reminded him. Kiba shot a look at Sasuke, the looked back at Neji disbelievingly.

"Ha, nice try. How could he be dead, he's sitting right there," Kiba said pointing at the Uchiha.

"You didn't even try to pay attention at the briefing did you?" Sasuke asked, annoyed. Neji had explained to him what Tsunade had said.

"It was because of Sakura-San that Sasuke-Kun is alive," Lee explained. "Tsunade explained that She is not actually from Konoha, although her lineage does trace back to our village. Sakura was born In Tengoku, where her family was killed," he recapped. He turned his attention to Sasuke. "Am I right to assume that the brunette woman with you is Kaori-San?"

Sasuke gave his usual "Hn" for an answer. He cast a glance at Kaori and Kakashi who sat not to far away. They seemed to be discussing the reinforcements.

"Oi, Sasuke-Teme. What was going on with you and Sakura-Chan before?" Naruto asked. He still seemed tired, having been woken by Kiba prodding him with a stick. "You had your hands on her waist I heard from fuzzy brows," Naruto said jerking his thumb at Lee.

"Shut up dope," Sasuke growled. Oh how he wanted to kill Lee right now.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: That's a wrap for now. Just two more chapters, and possibly an epilogue depending on ho the last few chapters go. Hope everyone liked this chapter. I thought I would relieve to tension a little, kind of like the calm before the storm, lol.

Don't forget to review before you go!


	18. Part XVIII: Team Seven

A/N: I'm SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY! This chapter is finally out. Please read! Gah…..

Review Reply first though:

G.G: thanks for the review!

Doesntmatter2u: Sorry about the misspelled words, I do try though, lol. Thank you fro reviewing.

Kyuubi-Sharingan508: I will not, I repeat, WILL NOT delete this story. This story has only a little longer to go and I will not end it now. Thank you for reviewing.

Razslover1: updated.

Mysticbluefox : I love the characters, I couldn't just leave them out.

Sukarou: Thanks for he review.  
ShyLittleAngel: I'm glad you liked the romantic scenes I put in this story. Thank you for he review.

Nanashi Barton: I never take constructive criticism offensively. I would rather know that I'm doing wrong. Besides, if you care enough to help out that means I'm doing something right. I'll definitely look into a beta for my next story, can you suggest anyone? That would be great. Thank you for reviewing.

Sakura-Chan: Updated!

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BADDtotheproverbialbone'lill-y: I can't tell you those things. You'll have to read to find out.

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Only Secret: I'm squealing with you. Thanks for the ice cream! that's one of my favorites. I'm kind of sad about the story ending too, but I know there will be a sequel so I'm not too bummed. I have to thank you for being such a faithful reviewer!

ch3rryblossom-baby: Oh god, I'm a drug dealer lol. J/K. I'm glad you like the story so much.

KRISTA: I don't have a ship in my head, there is a wheel with a dead hamster, but no ship. Grrr. Sorry about the late update. School and this story are conflicting in my head.

Sesshygirl3: don't melt! Read! Thank you for he nice words. :p

shinobi-Sakura: I know, I can't believe I'm almost done either. This is going to be the first full on story that I finish though so woot! Thank you for the encouragement!

DevilsLittleSister: Sakura is willing, Bwahahahaha. Thanks for the review.

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HikariStar77: that's dedication. I'm glad my story could keep you entertained for a whole hour. Thank you for reviewing. Sorry I didn't email you to let you know the chapter would take a while.

Icydragon14:Updated.

Karia Ithilai : Updated! But thank you for the nice words.

kami's right hand girl: Sorry about the spelling. I'm lad you liked it anyways.

Shinobi Darkbeak: thank you fir reviewing. My new years was crazy, I hope your new year was good too.

CrAzY-SiLLy-Me: I'm loving that idea. It made me happy. Thank you for reviewing.

Sakura-Girl 2005: Yay, thank you for reviewing.

neu chi no nai u: Thanks.

Now story!

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The group of leaf shinobi made there way through the forest, jumping from tree to tree at a fast rate. Naruto and Kakashi lead the team while Kaori was not far behind. Next was Neji and Shikamaru, who were followed by Lee and Tenten. Sasuke and Sakura stayed behind them. Holding up the rear was Ino and Kiba.

"Were exactly are we going?" Ino asked impatiently. Her blond hair swept from side to side as she moved expertly to avoid the random branches.

"The Village of Tengoku. That's were Sakura was born, and were we'll find Jaaku," Sasuke answered. Ino was surprised that the usually quite boy had actually spoken to her without being prompted. However, she noticed his worried glances at Sakura the whole morning and figured that had something to do with his change in behavior.

Sakura kept her hands curled in tight fists. She would be lying to herself to say she was not scared. To be honest, she was bordering petrified. '_You can do this, you can do this, you can do this,'_ her inner self cheered.

A sudden noise caught Sakura's attention. She stopped and withdrew a kunai from her pouch, standing in a fighting stance. Ino nearly ran into her and Kiba came to a halt beside Sasuke.

"What the hell are you doing forehead girl?" Ino asked angrily as she steadied herself. "Why did you stop like that?"

Sakura kept her eyes on the tree near her until a bird flew out from behind the leaves. The pink haired kunoichi sighed and pocketed her kunai. "Sorry," she said. She rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment. Sasuke lunged at Sakura knocking the two of them off the branch. Sakura felt the air rush out of her lungs as the wind was knocked out of her.

"Get down!" she heard Sasuke yell. A few seconds later, the branch exploded. The force of the explosion pushed Sasuke and Sakura faster to the ground. In a last minute move, Sasuke managed to flip himself and the girl in his arms around to safely land on the ground. He used his back as a shield for Sakura as bits of bark floated down.

Sakura watched as Sasuke grunted from the debris falling on him. "Sasuke-Kun!" she cried.

"Don't worry," he said. The two jumped to their feet in time to realize that they were surrounded by shadow demons. The others joined them on the ground, un harmed by the explosion. "Damn it!" Sasuke cursed. They had meant to sneak up on the enemy, but the tables had been turned.

"These things are like cockroaches," Naruto said as he pulled out a kunai. "Guess we'll have to exterminate them," He added. He was met with many blank stares.

"That…was really lame," Kiba said in disappointment.

"Um, guys? Demons, there going to kill us," Ino said indignantly. "Can we start doing our job now?" she asked impatiently.

"I thought you'd never ask!" Naruto said. He charged a demon head on, slashing at it's throat. The demon melted into the ground just in time and reappeared behind Naruto. The blond was momentarily shocked, but was able to swing around in time to land a sharp kick to the demon's jaw. Just then, more demons attacked Naruto. "Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!" Naruto yelled. Many more Naruto's appeared and began attacking the demons.

Tenten pulled weapon after weapon out from her scrolls and aimed them accurately at each demon. One grabbed her from behind, however at that moment a she became incased in smoke. Her body was replaced by a log. The demon didn't have time to register this as a large shuriken embedded itself in its back. Tenten smirked from her perch on a low branch.

A group of demons closed in on Neji but were pushed away as he began to spin around in a shield of chakra, the hakke shou kaiten. The demons were thrown away.

Lee punched one demon in the gut and flipped over it, landing a hard kick on another demon. He spun around wildly having his foot make contact with any demon that got too close. He grabbed on demon's hand and spun him right into a tree.

Kiba and Akamaru were using juujin bunshin, and attacked the demons together. Kiba hopped over Akamaru's back and spun around bringing two demons down with him. Akamaru slashed relentlessly at the offending beings.

Ino sent kunai flying at demons in every which way. Each kunai held an explosion tag on the end. The demons were thrown into trees and the ground. "Too easy," Ino praised herself. Se sent a look to Shikamaru who was currently holding a group of demons in place. Because they were already on shadow mode, Shikamaru could hold more of them for longer. As his jutsu wore off, Naruto, Lee, and Neji were there to demolish their forces.

Sasuke did a few hands seals and made the katon ryuuka no jutsu. The fire balls hit the demons knocking them away from the group. He threw shuriken at them, slicing through most of the attackers.

Not far from him, Kaori and Kakashi were back to back, fending of demons. Kakashi used his sharingan and a kunai to defeat any who attacked them while Kaori sliced away at them with her Katana.

Sakura slammed her fist into one of her attackers and swung around to kick it in the face. She used the momentum to swing back around and land another kick in a different demons gut. After landing a backhand spring, sakura whipped out a kunai and sent it straight into a demon's chest. She crouched own and swiped her leg out, knocking a demon to the ground. One surprised her and landed it's foot on her back making her fall forward. Sakura tumbled harmlessly away and quickly embedded a kunai into the demon's skull.

"They just keep coming!" Ino cried, no thoroughly exhausted. Shikamaru nodded in agreement with his fiancé as he captured another demon in his shadow bind.

"Where are they coming from?" Naruto asked, slamming another demon into a near by tree. "These must be clones!" he said in realization.

Sasuke cursed under his breath for not realizing sooner. "Lets leave these guys here. We head to Tengoku as planned. Only fight if you are engaged, otherwise avoid it!" he shouted, stepping up in his leader role. The others nodded and shot back up into the trees.

Sakura and Ino left behind some explosion tags and race to catch up with the others. A few seconds later, many loud explosions were heard. Ino and Sakura smirked sadistically, both proud of their handy work.

"These guys were easy, but their were so many of them," Tenten said.

"It is surprising how many men gave up their humanity for Jaaku," Kaori explained. "He promised them immortality in exchange for their souls." There was a hint of sadness in her voice.

"It will be dark soon, we should set up camp," Neji said. Sasuke sent the Hyugaa a glare.

"We need to get to Tengoku. The sooner this is over the better," Sasuke demanded.

"Sasuke," Kakashi finally spoke up. "Neji is right. It would be no good to go charging in there after fighting that many enemies. Why do you think they came? They knew we where coming and wanted to weaken or forces."

"Fine, we'll set up camp, but tomorrow we leave early," Sasuke said. He dropped down from the trees and the others followed. Sakura watched Sasuke's back. She knew he wanted to finish this so they could go home, but somehow she couldn't feel excited about the task at hand.

"Sakura, are you ok?" Kaori asked, tapping the medic on her shoulder. Sakura shrugged smiling weakly.

"I'd like to say I'm fine, but the truth is…" Sakura stopped herself. She didn't want to think about it. "I'm just tired."

"It's okay to be scared, Sakura." Kaori spoke softly. "You are stronger then I am. I would be terrified by all this, yet you hold it together so easily."

"I don't think it's as it seems," Sakura explained. She pulled her hair slightly and twirled it around her finger. "I have to be strong. But Kaori, you've had to deal with this all your life and you're doing just fine. You are stronger then I am. Without these wings I'm pretty powerless."

"That's not true. Besides, If you take away Naruto's kyubbi, and Sasuke's sharingan would they be weak? No. You are powerful, but not because of the wings." Kaori offered a small smile. "You shouldn't doubt yourself so much."

Kaori walked over to Kakashi, leaving Sakura with her words. A smile pulled at her lips and before long Sakura was laughing. Ino and Tenten gave the girl odd glances.

"Are you ok, Sakura?" Ino asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sakura fallowed the girls to the fire.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The night was calm. There was no movement in the trees and the river near the camp was still. Sakura sat at the edge of the water and dipped her feet into the cold liquid. Goose bumps sprouted all over her legs, but she rubbed them away.

"Hey, Sakura-Chan," Naruto said sitting down beside her. Sakura gave a smile and a nod. "What are you doing out here. You should be sleeping." Naruto noticed the blue tint Sakura's skin had taken and dropped his jacket on her shoulders.

"Can't sleep. How bout you?" Sakura asked. She wrapped the jacket tighter around her. Naruto nodded. "I can't believe all that's happened. Last week things were so normal, now all this."

"Yeah, this is kind of crazy. At least you know how I felt when I found out I had the Kyubi in me," Naruto said. He laughed a little at that.

"It'd definitely a surprise. Almost as big a surprise as when Sasuke came back," Sakura added.

"Yeah, but it was more of a surprise for the village then for us," Naruto reminded. "I mean, we were the ones to convince him to come back….of course there was some blood involved."

Sakura slapped Naruto upside the head playfully. "Yeah, your blood." She smiled a little. "And his, and mine. It was a team effort. Kakashi was so proud." The two laughed.

"What are you two doing out here," Sasuke asked. Sakura and Naruto spun around to see the third member of their team arrive. "You should be getting sleep." Regardless, Sasuke sat down with the two. He sat on the other side of Sakura putting her in the middle.

"This is weird," Naruto said. "It actually feels like we're team seven again."

"Hn."

Naruto and Sasuke smiled at the concept. They wouldn't admit it to each other but they both missed the tree of them doing missions together. Although they had been together this whole time, team seven was never reinstated. Or at least not officially.

"Guys, we never stopped being team seven," Sakura said. "We just took a short recess." Ever the voice of reason, sakura wrapped her arms around the boys.

"Bastard"

"Dope"

"Both of you are idiots."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: Dear lord, this chapter nearly killed me. I started it over like four times. At one point I had it done, but it left very little for the next chapter so I had to re-write it. Sorry for making you all wait but as the final stretch comes to the end the chapters are getting hard for me. I don't want this story to end, but next chapter is the end, then I'll either have an epilogue or a preview of the next story (or both maybe).

Till next time.


	19. Part IXX: Begining of the end

A/N: I AM NOT DEAD! Now that I have that out of the way, I must apologize. Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! I've been crazy these past few months since I last updated. I almost failed like three classes and didn't graduate, plus prom, graduation, work everything got me way to distracted. My computer seriously broke once and for all. The motherboard broke, like in half. I also lost my inspiration, which completely sucked. I didn't watch any anime for a long time.

Luckily I'm back in the swing of things (lame saying, I know). I'm going to connecticon soon so I'm psyched about that. I'm not doing review replies for last chapter though, cause all my e-mails got deleted and I'm too lazy to go into my review page cause as I'm writing this I'm running out the door.

Story time!

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sakura dug her toe into the dirt as she and the others waited patiently for Kakashi and Kaori to return. Naruto hummed cheerfully beside her bobbing slightly to the tune. Sasuke had an annoyed eyebrow cocked at the blonde's strange attitude. It was usual for him to be excited about a mission, even if it was sure to be dangerous. However, this fight was certain to be more then dangerous, it was bigger then all of them. If they failed, the human race was over.

And Naruto was just sitting there humming.

"Dope."

"What did you say teme!"

"Guys, knock it off!"

"The dope is too oblivious to realize the severity of this situation."

"That's not true! I'm just excited!"

"Only a dope would be excited about this kind of fight."

"Come over hear and say that!"

"I can't get any closer, idiot."

"That's it, let's go!"

"Naruto, calm down."

"You should listen to her, you don't want to wear yourself out getting your ass kicked right now do you?"

"I'll take you and all those demons down and still have enough energy to race back to Konoha in time for dinner!"

"Baka."

Naruto was standing with his fists up and ready while Sasuke just watched the blonde with mild amusement. Sakura stood between the two with her arms helplessly held up trying to calm them down. The three of them were completely unaware of the strange looks they were receiving from the rest of the team.

"Maybe the three of you would like to quite down like Kakashi said before we are discovered," Neji said calmly stepping up to the members of team seven. He was met with matching death glares and an apology from Sakura. "Just keep it down. It would be pointless to be found before Kakashi and Kaori could get back from the scout."

Sakura nodded and pulled Naruto on the ground with her as she sat down, motioning Sasuke to fallow her lead. After a moment more of glaring at the Hyuuga, Sasuke crossed his legs and sat down.

About a half-hour later, Kakashi and Kaori returned. "The guards switch places every twenty minutes. They don't leave their posts until the next two guards come. This means are best bet is to go after they change so we only have to take out two," Kakashi explained. "Neji, Lee. I want you two to clear the way for the rest of us. Watch the post until the next watch comes, then get out of there. Our presence will be known so the most time we have is twenty minutes to get to Jakuu, understand," Kakashi looked around the group of serious faces. "Good. Then Sakura, what is the plan?"

Sakura's head snapped up so fast that she almost gave Naruto whiplash. "W-w-wait! What? I'm not in charge here, this isn't my decision," She said shaking her hands around frantically. She couldn't imagine what Kakashi was thinking giving her control. She was a medic-nin, not a group leader.

"Sakura," Kakashi said softly, "This mission has always been yours." His visible eye gave away his sad smile. "Since you were targeted, it's been your call. So what is your plan?" Sakura eyed the older jounin carefully and saw his encouragement. She understood that this was in fact her decision, one that only she could make. He wasn't talking about what the team would do. He was telling her that whatever dedication she made would be ok, and that he trusted her.

Tears burned behind her eyes as she realized for the first time how serious this was for her, her friends, her family, Konoha, and mankind. Her choice decided everything for everyone, and there were no second chances.

Kakashi already knew what Sakura would do. It wasn't that he saw the future, or some stupid premonition. No, Kakashi knew his student. She was strong, responsible, dependable, and most notably compassionate. It was that virtue that seemed like a curse at this moment. There was no way his only female student would allow someone to die for her. Sakura had made her decision long before this moment, even without realizing it.

Choking back the sob that had knotted in her throat, Sakura was finally ready to speak. "All right!" She shouted fiercely. "Neji, Lee, do as Kakashi suggested and go ahead of us to clear the way. When you know for sure that the way is clear, and not a moment before you are positive, give the signal. Naruto, Sasuke, You two will lead the group in. Ino, I want you and Shikamaru to cover them. Use any binding technique you can to hold off the demon clones. Hinata, as soon as we enter, activate you're byakugan and find the real demons so that we don't waste energy killing off clones. Everybody else, fallow my lead," Sakura finished.

The group was silent in utter shock at how quickly Sakura had taken control and made a complete plan of attack. No one dared to move for a moment. Eventually Naruto broke out into a wide grin and started to jump around.

"You heard the lady! Lets go!" he cried happily.

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"_Uchiha!"_

_The voice was cold and calm, yet the familiarity was what made him turn around. From across the bloody battlefield, her hair caught his eye's first. The color was darker, but it was still pink. A beacon of purity surrounded by corpses and blood. Ironic almost, had she not been a shinobi. Her eyes stared unwavering at him and he could have sworn that her fist clenched onto the other's orange jacket just a little tighter. _

His best friend struggled to stand on his own, but Sakura held him in place, gently but instantly. It was strange that, although he had been fighting with them just moments ago, he felt like this was the first time he'd seen them since he left. Like he noticed all their changes for the first time.

"_Uchiha Sasuke," She called, just as forcefully. "You know why we're here."_

"_Tsk. All these years, and you haven't given up?"_

"_Honestly, did you think we would?" There was a trance of mirth in her voice, but it was fake. "For the Murder of Uchiha Itachi and Orochimaru, Konoha has vested me with the power to grant you amnesty for your betrayal of our village, granted you return with no fight."_

_Sasuke just stared at her. "Why?"_

"_If you do fight back, we will bring you to Konoha by force where you will lose your amnesty, and be placed under probation for one year's times, after which you will be allowed to rejoin the shinobi force."_

"_I don't care. You can kill me, I've obtained my goal. Konoha has nothing to offer me."_

_Sakura felt her breath hitched, but the back of her mind screamed at her. She had anticipated this and came prepared. "Have you obtained all your goals?" she questioned knowingly. Sasuke didn't respond. "Do you have an heir to restore your clan?" She almost laughed at his face._

"_Why do you care?"_

"_We care because you are a part of team seven, like it or not!" Naruto shouted. His body shuddered and he fell out of Sakura's arms coughing up blood. _

"_Do you really want to die here?" Sakura asked taking a bold step forward. "Let your clan die out because of your useless pride? Suck it up, Uchiha!" tears fell from her eyes. "Do you think your family would be proud of you? Sure, you avenged them, but you soiled their ideals in the process. You betrayed the village they fought so hard to protect! And now you spit on your last chance of amnesty," Sakura looked down and clenched her fists. She felt her nails bite into her palms and bit her lip. "Do you really care so little?" she asked quietly. _

"_You are this determined?"_

"_You even have to ask, Sasuke-kun?"_

"_Yeah," Naruto paused to cough, "did you expect any different, teme?"_

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Sakura!"

"I'm on it!" she cried, running over to Shikamaru who had fallen after being struck from behind. She pumped healing chakera to her hands and quickly healed the wound as best she could. "You alright, Shikamaru?" Sakura asked when he started to stand.

"Yeah, thanks," he said.

"No problem. Ino would have killed me if I let her fiancée get to bloodied up," she joked humorlessly. She was on her feet and taking down demons in a matter of seconds. She felt something heavy in her heart suddenly and fell to her knees.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto cried. He finished off his opponent and rushed to his teammate's side. "Sakura, what happened?"

"He's here," Sakura said. Her chest tightened as an overwhelming fear settled on her. She began screaming uncontrollably and gripped Naruto for comfort. Her body became tense then numb. "He, he…he, h..e," Sakura struggled to fight back her tears, "he's…he…'s going, he's going to ki…ll, kill me!"

Sasuke came rushing to Sakura when he heard her begin to wail. Naruto handed the frantic girl over, and Sasuke crushed her to him, all the while hoping that Naruto and the others would cover them. "Shh, Sakura, calm down. He isn't going to kill you. I'm here," he assured, rubbing her back. He remembered doing this not long ago, back at Konoha. "I won't let him hurt you. You asked me long ago if I cared so little, remember?" Sasuke rocked Sakura gently. He saw Kaori running to them. "You have to live through this, Sakura. You made me care then, and you will now too," he told her. He hugged her more tightly.

"Sakura-San!" Kaori cried. "Snap out of it, those images aren't real!" Sasuke snapped his head up at her words. "Jaaku is using a jutsu on her, showing her false images of her death. I've seen it done before. It's how he killed my father, but it isn't real!" Kaori cried. "Wake up!"

Sakura took in a deep breath suddenly and snapped up. She seemed frazzled for a moment, but soon began to calm down. "Sakura-San, are you okay?" Kaori asked.

"Huh? Oh, hai. I'm fine, now. Just a little pissed off. I'm going to take that bastard down for that one!" Sakura growled. She hopped to her feet, followed by Sasuke. "I'm going to kill that ass."

Sakura jetted off back into battle. Sasuke was on her heels until he felt someone hold him back. "Sasuke," Kaori looked to the ground. "You need to protect Sakura."

"What do you think I've been doing?" Sasuke replied.

The older ninja slapped her forehead. "That's not what I mean. I know you have been protecting her, better then I have. It was supposed to be my job but you do it better then I do. You can save her physically and mentally."

"Is now really the time for this? We should be doing our job instead of chit chatting," Sasuke said getting slightly annoyed. "If you have a point, make it."

"That's just it, it is my job, and you've made it yours. There was always supposed to be two guardians but Otone died. She left behind her blade for a worthy predecessor." Kaori removed the second katana from her back and handed it to Sasuke. "Just go now, do what it is you do, ok?"

Sasuke took the Katana carefully and looked Kaori in the eye. "Ok then, partner," he smirked before heading off into battle.

Kaori stood a moment shaking her head. "Dear lord, what have I done."

O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Okay, so more chapters then I expected, but I felt bad cause it's been a long, long, long, LONG, time since I updated. Again, I am so sorry about making y'all wait.

Please review still though?


	20. Part XX: End of the Begining

Sakura moved through the demon shadows fighting off hazy arms left and right. She healed the wounds that she could without giving up too much chakra. The others were fighting too, trying to keep the mass of demons away from her, afraid that one would be Jaaku.

Out of the corner of her eye, Sakura noticed Sasuke's new weapon. She knew it was Otone's and that Kaori had probably given it to him.

Her body ached and wanted to give up, but Sakura kept on pushing, refusing to show her weakness. She knew that Jaaku was waiting for her to give up hope; to break. That's when he would attack. A plan hatched in Sakura's mind.

One demon appeared behind Sakura and sliced at her back. With a loud gasp, she fell forward, her face meeting the ground with a thud. The team stopped mid movement to watch the scene. It seemed like slow motion as her hair fanned out around her, covering her face. Before the demon could attack again, Naruto aimed a kunai expertly between its eyes.

"Sakura-chan!" he cried. Naruto ran to his fallen teammate, breaking everyone else of his or her trance. They too were about to go to Sakura but a violent wind picked up and threw them all, even Naruto, back. A dark shadow appeared beneath Sakura, and the sky turned if possible, blacker. Lightning filled the sky, and from the shadow a form emerged. Jaaku smirked at Sakura's limp body.

"You saved me a trip, Sakura-chan," Jaaku said, his voice smooth and sickening. His hand reached out for Sakura, but he pulled back as he realized something was wrong. There was no blood pooling out of her back.

"You and your dramatic entrances. Anyone ever tell you you're a diva?"

Sakura smirked.

Jaaku made to pull back, but Sakura's hand reached out and held him still. "Don't call me 'chan' like we are friends,' Sakura sneered. But despite her tone, she was smiling. Jaaku screamed in pain and pulled his wrist back from the pink haired girl. Where her hand was, a talisman now burned his skin. "What? Don't like my surprise?"

Jaaku tore the paper off of him and glared at Sakura. "I can't wait to kill you," he seethed, removing his katana from its sheath.

"That's my line!" Sakura jumped up and removed a kunai from her pouch.

She ran at Jaaku but ducked just as he swung wildly at her. She sprang between his legs and kicked back into his spin causing him to land on his stomach.

Jaaku turned around and pushed himself up. "I killed your little boyfriend over there, what makes you think you'll fare any better?"

"You may have killed him," Sakura said mirthfully, "but the effects weren't permanent, and neither was that jutsu you bastard. But don't worry, no one I've ever killed came back, and you won't be the first."

"Cocky aren't you?" Jaaku lunged at Sakura fast, and sent her flying. Her body came to a stop as it made contact with the windy barrier that kept the rest of the team out of the make shift arena. Sakura felt herself slipping down and saw that Jaaku was coming right at her. Her hands were moving faster then her mind was and she watched herself throw a kunai at Jaaku. He dodged the attack, but the distraction gave Sakura enough time to position herself behind Jaaku.

Jaaku felt Sakura's presence and moved out of the way in time to avoid her kunai. His hand wrapped around her throat with lightning speed and he lifted her off the ground. "I'm done playing games with you," Jaaku sneered. "I have been very patient with you but now it is time for our destiny. Consider it, a merging of sorts," he added with a wicked grin.

Sakura began to struggle violently against Jaaku's vice like grip. She felt the familiar dizzy feeling wash over her and a sharp pain on her shoulder blades.

No!

She felt her wings trying to burst out. She fought against it knowing that if she were to allow that power out, Jaaku would have everything he needed.

"Sakura!"

A strange tearing sound caught Sakura and Jaaku's attention. Out of the corner of her eye, the winged shinobi saw Kaori and Sasuke breaking through the barrier. They were the only ones to make it before the void closed.

"Let her go!" Kaori screamed as she charged at Jaaku forcefully. Jaaku loosened his grip on Sakura giving her just enough time to free herself. But it was already too late. When Sakura fell back away from Jaaku, she saw a downy white wing flash in front of her face.

Kaori had Jaaku on his back with her katana against his neck. "You bastard! You took everything from her, from me! I'll kill you!" She was screaming wildly while pressing her katana closer against Jaaku's neck. She was barely holding herself back.

"You've changed so much from the little girl that wanted to save me," Jaaku smiled. Kaori felt her breath hitch at the memory. She didn't notice Jaaku's hand slip into her waist pouch.

"The need for revenge often blinds the ideals of a child, wouldn't you say?"

Jaaku smiled warmly at her, throwing the belligerent konoichi off. "You would have made a great guardian. Too bad you went crazy. So who are you right now? Kaori, or Otone?"

Kaori backed up slightly more, lessening her force on him. "What are you saying?"

"The sweet Kaori I knew was a passionate individual who wanted to save everyone. Otone was the realistic one. She was also.." Jaaku paused to reach out and touch Kaori's hair ribbon, "..the one who wore her hair up."

Before Kaori could react, Jaaku stabbed her thigh with the kunai he had removed from Kaori's pouch.

"Kaori!" Sakura cried as Sasuke helped her to her feet. Kaori tried to stand but the gash on her leg was deep; she stumbled to the ground.

"I almost feel sorry for you," Jaaku said, although there was no hint of forlorn in his voice. "Your need to save me reminded me of Minako, that heinous woman. She was a fool to love me." Jaaku bent down to Kaori and turned her on her back. "You were a fool, too." With that, Jaaku plunged the kunai into Kaori's chest. Her violet eyes widened at the sudden pain and blood spilled over the corners of her mouth.

"Kaori!" Sakura screamed. She felt tears fall fast down her face. Sasuke had to hold her in place else she would have run over to Jaaku, right into danger.

"Let me go! Sasuke-kun, please, let me go!" Her knees became weak and her body fell forward. Sakura felt dizzy and her body began to shudder. Kaori, the woman she barely knew, was dying. All she ever wanted was to keep Sakura safe, and now she had paid the price. A great weight of guilt pushed against Sakura's shoulders. But even worse was the feeling of loss.

Kaori had been a friend, despite their short time together. Hell, Kaori was a blood relative, and Sakura didn't have too many of those.

_Kaori gave Sakura a confused look. Waving her arms frantically, Sakura forced herself to regain her composure. "I'm sorry, but you weren't kidding when you said my mother and I have the same taste in men. I guess we both have a thing for survivors."_

_Kaori gave Sakura an amused look and chuckled. "That hardly deserved a laugh, Sakura-sama," although she herself was laughing. It was nice to enjoy each other's company for the morning. It was hard to find amusement in anything with everything that has happened._

_"Hero-san, he told me to tell you he was proud of you. So is Michiko,"_

_Sasuke said. Sakura beamed at the dark haired boy. "And apparently they approve of someone. I didn't really understand it. Hero-san just said you had your Mother's taste for the cold. Any idea what that means?" Sasuke asked._

_Sakura and Kaori burst out laughing. Sasuke felt odd at that point. "Right.." he said cautiously._

_"They love you, and they have good reason to, Sakura-sama. You are a strong, reliable person who cares about life and the people you cherish. You wear your heart on your sleeve despite the life you have chosen."_

Kaori had been there for Sakura all her life, whether she had known it or not.

Now she was gone.

Jaaku kicked Kaori's body away from him and wiped her blood off his hands. "Well, that was dramatic," he said clearly pleased with himself. "One down, and I suppose I have you to go?" Jaaku questioned, facing Sasuke.

"You bastard," was all Sasuke said as he charged at Jaaku with Otone's katana. Jaaku backed away and held off the attack with his own blade. He pushed Sasuke away, but the Uchiha gained his balance and landed a hard kick to Jaaku's jaw. "I won't let you catch me off guard again." Sasuke stated.

"I killed you once, don't think I wont do it again," Jaaku warned, slashing at Sasuke's leg. The Uchiha cringed but managed to dodge another one of Jaaku's wild swings. Sasuke jumped back a few feet to ready himseld for another attack, then charged at Jaaku who just barely dodged.

Sakura watched the fight through blurry eyes. Sasuke had already died once to save her, and now Kaori was dying, or possibly already dead...

The fight was never ending. Something had to break. Sakura crawled over to Kaori's body and placed the brunet's head on her lap. "I'm so sorry Kaori. I know you wanted to avoid this, but there really is no other choice. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if another person died when there was something I could do to stop all of this."

Sakura placed Kaori's head back onto the ground. "Thank you."

"I've been afraid of this power, but now I know that I have to use it to end this fight. Besides, now I know I have more to do."

Sasuke felt his legs slip out from under him and saw Jaaku's blade right before his eyes. "That was a valiant try," Jaaku sneered. "But not enough to stop me!" He pulled back the blade and plunged it full force. Sasuke just stared ahead, unable to move his eyes. Jaaku also stood surprised. A flash of white feathers cleared and a drop of blood slipped down from Sakura's mouth. Jaaku slowly realized what had happened and began to cackle. "Do you know what you've done? You saved his life and now he will be purged from the world along with all the other filthy humans."

Sakura smiled brightly. "Who are you calling filthy?" Jaaku noticed something was wrong. He tried to pull his katana away, but Sakura held it in her stomach. "Too late," she teased. A blinding white light enveloped her body.

Sasuke jumped up and ran to Sakura, but the force of her power kept him from getting too close. He couldn't see anything, but he could hear Jaaku's screams. The barrier around them started to disperse.

"No, Sakura!" Sasuke tried to break through to Sakura, but the wind barrier's force as it broke down pushed him even further away from her.

"Sakura!"

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto was screaming off in the distance alerting Sasuke that the others where coming. The different power forces where working against each other causing everything to become blurry and gusts of wind further disturbed Sasuke's vision. The light began to die down, and a flurry of feathers swept around the battlefield. One figure stood in the center with its face covered.

Sasuke felt his heart stop. The figure was human.

The small bit of hope Sasuke had mustered came crashing down as he heard the sickeningly familiar laugh. "What a fool!" Jaaku was laughing so hard tears began to spill down his face. "All of that, and for nothing! Little Sakura-chan died for nothing!" Jaaku laughed harder and harder until he became racked with coughs. His eyes showed fear at the sudden human action, and he nervously scanned his now human hands. "What the hell is this?!" he cried.

Jaaku was gone, replaced by his former self, Senichi.

Kakashi appeared next to Sasuke. "Minako, she wanted to find a way to save Senichi, not kill him," he said thoughtfully. "This makes more sense."

"I'm still going to kill him."

Kakashi nodded to his student. "By all means, go ahead."

Senichi had fallen to his knees. He was near hysterics rubbing his human flesh and cursing Sakura. Finally he began to calm and bowed his head. Sasuke wasted no time impaling him on Otone's katana.

"Maybe letting you live the rest of your life as a human would have been a better punishment for your crimes, but this made me feel better." He turned away from the sputtering mess of the dying demon and walked towards the group, then right pass them. His fists clenched and his jaw set. Naruto watched him disappear into the woods and decided it would be best to leave him alone.

Naruto quietly made his way to the battlefield. There was no trace of Sakura left, except the feathers that were still falling like snow. He reached out his hand and caught one, holding it gently. His eyes shifted downward and noticed a small shimmering object. Sakura's locket lay opened on the ground seemingly untouched by the war. He bent down and picked up the tiny piece of jewelry and held it close to his heart, as it was the last piece of Sakura.

Kakashi had gone to collect Kaori's body. To his relief there was still a pulse, and he called Hinata over to help out. The rest of the team stood in quiet awe. Ino was the first to break down. Her body collapsed to the ground and silent tears streamed down her face. Shikamaru placed a hand on her shoulder and felt her hand touch his. Tenten's body shook, looking down to hide her tears beneath her bangs. Lee slammed his fists into the ground repeatedly. Kiba and Neji gave their moment of silence.

Naruto looked to Kakashi with tears running down his face. The feather was still gently held in his hand and the locket now safely laid in his pocket.

"That didn't just happen, right?" He asked disbelievingly. Kakashi tightened his hold on Kaori. "That was all fake. It couldn't have been that simple, right? Sakura-chan is stronger then that!" Naruto pleaded with Kakashi.

"I'm sorry." Naruto shook his head, not wanting to believe it. He fell to the ground and let out a heartbroken cry.

Sasuke just kept walking. He couldn't stop. If his feet stopped then everything would be real. The fight, the demons, and worst of all, her death. Sakura was dead. He stopped at that thought, unable to move, frozen. Sakura was dead.

'_I'm not gone, Sasuke-kun.'_

"And now I'm going crazy," Sasuke thought out loud. That was the only reasonable explanation for why he was hearing Sakura calling him like everything was fine.

"Would you just turn around?" Sakura sounded annoyed and impatient. Sasuke hesitated before doing as he was told to. "That's better, now lets make this quick, as you can probably tell I don't have a lot of time."

"This isn't right," Sasuke pointed out. "There are a lot of reasons why this isn't right' the most notable being that you are dead," Sasuke stated. "You do know you're dead, right?"

"If you actually believed that I was dead, would you honestly be this big of an ass?" Sakura smirked at his silence.

"I can see right through you." Sasuke argued lamely.

"Look, I said I don't have a lot of time, so let me get to my point. What I did back there took enough life force from me to kill me. So I should be dead. However, there is still more for me to do. This was never meant to be the end. It's actually just the beginning," Sakura began to fade. "Shit, okay, footnotes version. Something bad is going to happen, bigger then Jaaku bad. Me equals savior if you can find a way to bring me back in about a year."

"That's completely insane!" Sasuke said, not completely believing all of this. "Your body was destroyed, how could you come back?"

"Sasuke-kun, I have wings, and you think this is insane?" Sasuke had no response to that. "Look, there is something you need to find, it's called the ethereal light. If you can find it, you can bring me back. That's all I can say for now. I still have a promise to keep," Sakura disappeared.

Sasuke just stood there for a while, not sure what to do. Finally he turned on his heel and started heading back to the group, a small smile on his face. They had a new mission.

**Bring Haruno Sakura back**.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: so thats it for this story, there will be one more chapter to wrap things up and set things up for the next story. Hope you all enjoyed it. Thank you for being patient with me, i know that isn't easy since it takes me so long to get chapters up. later for now!


	21. Part XXI: one ends, another begins

The victory march was solemn as the brave shinobi walked through the gates of Konoha. All though the fight had been won, no one celebrated. Tears still fresh in their eyes, the men and women who fought for the village walked into town with their heads held down. Tsunade welcomed them into her office once they arrived, but her smile fell when the head count came up short. The noticeable absence of her pink haired apprentice and the joyless faces of those standing before her told her enough.

"She's..." the question could not form. Tsunade tried once more, but there was no way her throat would allow the words to come out. Perhaps it was her heart. Kakashi nodded slowly fighting the knot that had formed in his own throat.

"It was...her choice, Lady Hokage."

The statement made the truth no easier to accept. Tsunade's eyes traveled to the two men in the back of the group. Naruto was having a hard time controlling his emotions and left the room. As soon as the door shut a horrible cry erupted. Sasuke, however, remained stoic as usual.

Tsunade gathered herself and dismissed the shinobi, knowing that there was far too much emotional drain on them. Now was not the time for a report of the mission. It could wait until the next day. "Sasuke," Tsunade called, almost as a last thought. "Stay here for a moment."

Sasuke stood and waited as the others filed out of the room. Neji and Lee nodded to him as they left, feeling that he was hurting most of all. Ino stopped by his side. She opened her mouth and closed it a few times, trying to think of something to say. Finally she gave up and gently wrapped her arms around him. It was not like their childhood when she would throw herself at him. Shikamaru placed an arm around her and lead her out the door. Hinata just bowed before hurring out to find Naruto. Kakashi was the last to leave. He placed a hand upon Sasuke's shoulder and said, "Don't bottle this inside, She wouldn't want that."

"I have nothing to bottle," Sasuke said. Kakashi gave him a questioning look but did not press the matter. Once the door was closed, Sasuke approached Tsunade's desk.

The Hokage studied him carefully, and, choosing her words carefully, asked, "What the hell is wrong with you?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow, but was not truly taken aback. The Hokage was not one with words. "She's...Sakura is dead! How can you stand there like this is any other mission? She meant the world to everyone in this village and you can't even show the slightest sign of remorse. She was in love with you!"

Sasuke allowed Tsunade to calm herself before he spoke. It was odd to hear his own voice. He had not spoken since his encounter in the forest, and now his voice sounded hoarse and his throat felt strained. "If there is one thing I have learned on this mission, it is that death is not always permanent." Tsuande reeled back from his remark. "But I've actually learned two things."

"Explain yourself, now."

"She isn't gone for good. I will be executing a solo mission in three days to find something called the ethereal light."

Tsunade felt more perplexed then before. However, one thing stuck in her mind._ She isn't gone for good._

"I wont try and stop you," Tsunade said after a moment. "But take Naruto with you."

"No"

"Excuse me?" It wasn't unusual for Sasuke to fight with her on orders, but this involved Sakura. Tsunade felt like Naruto, and perhaps even Kakashi, should be included.

Sasuke did not want to explain, but he knew better then not to. Fighting the Hokage meant dealing with some one who could snap him in half like a twig. "Look, something...I'm not sure what, is gonna happen. All I know is that it will be bad and we need Sakura to fight it."

"All the more reason that you should have some one helping you. The faster you find this Ethereal...whatever, the better," Tsunade argued.

"No, all the more reason you need every available shinobi watching over Konoha," Sasuke argued back. "I don't know when this is all going to happen and if the village gets hit while me and Naruto are gone, Sakura may have no home to save. I wont let her feel lost like that ever again."

Tsunade sat down on her desk and crossed her legs. "Sasuke, I know you have little faith in the shinobi of this village, but we are more then capable of defending ourselves. I want you_ and_ Naruto to bring Sakura back, regardless of whatever is coming our way."

"I don't want to get anyone's hopes up!" Sasuke finally admitted. "I have no idea what this thing is or how I'm going to find it! I might..." He stopped himself, admitting for the first time what he knew the moment Sakura told him about the mission.

"You might...fail?" Tsunade finished. Sasuke did not reply. "In three days you and Naruto will leave the village." Sasuke started to argue but Tsunade spoke over him. "The record will show that it was a reconnaissance mission, and nothing more. You will return when Sakura is with you."

Sasuke bit his tounge and nodded. "You are not to tell Naruto what the actual mission is until you are beyond the gates of Konoha, understood?" Sasuke nodded again. "Good. You are dismissed." Sasuke turned to leave but was stopped. "One more thing. You said you learned two things, what was the second?"

Sasuke did not speak for a very long time. Tsunade waited patiently for his reply. Finally, looking over his shoulder, Sasuke said, "That I am very much in love with her." And with that, he was gone.

Tsunade leaned back with a small smile playing on her lips. Despite the loss of her apprentice, she could not help but feel just a tad happy. "It's about damn time," she said aloud. There was not a doubt in her mind that Sakura would return.

This was just the beginning.

a/n Well, that wraps this story up completely. Yay. The next story will hopefully be starting soon and with any luck the chapters will be up more consistently. Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed. You guys are the reason i kept going. This is the first multi chapter story that i have actually finished. Keep an eye out for the next story, Upon the Wings of War. The title is subject to change, but for those of you who have me on your alert, you'll be the first to know. Before i wrap things up, ill give a quick teaser for the next story.

Long ago, before the age of men, a war waged between two elements. Good and Evil. Light and Dark. Right and Wrong. All of these were names given to the elements that clashed. But when the humans inherited the earth both sides decided that they would appoint a chevalier to fight for them every hundred years. One side broke the rules and the other found out. Each side planted a false chevalier on the earth and waited for the other's strike. Now the element of evil has planned to attack, and the only way for good to fight back is for two shinobi from the village hidden in the leaves to find the ethereal light.


End file.
